The Next
by neveria yan
Summary: It's been 6 yrs but the world is still not nanite-free & suddenly, it plunges back into déjà vu. As Rex's world becomes shaken up, he faces new enemies whilst old fiends quietly stirs, threatening everything that Rex holds dear. In the midst of it all, he is challenged by new bonds that rocks his very core, which could either give him strength, or break him. (warning: Noex)
1. Kiss to win

****UPDATES 5** **th** **FEB 2018****

Cover art added! Let me know what you think of my chibi art! X3

Not much of an artist but hope it passed. Lol.

Asides from this, many thanks to all readers who have been patiently following and reading! Your comments are appreciated, and it motivates me to trudge on!

I'll try to post consistently as much as I can. If only I could do this as a full time job lol.

Since my story's carried on for a lonnnnng time, I've included relevant recap points referencing to earlier parts in my story at the bottom of each chapter. So that it will be easy for you in refreshing plot points. And I've also put some footnotes for references/ recap to the original cartoon.

FYI, this might turn out to be roughly a hundred chapter ride. I **swear** I will not abandon this halfway. So do stay with me.

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Hi! Hi! If you're here, this means you love the same thing I do –Generator Rex fan fic. ^_^

I love the series a lot and I'm a bit sad to see it end, so I thought, why not make my own continuation?

I've seen a couple of great fan fics out there, so I became inspired to write one too.

Of course, I don't own any of the characters nor the series, which was created by the amazing Man of Action Studios.

But I hope that you will enjoy reading this as much I have, writing it. So I welcome all comments. ^_^

FYI:

All past events leading up to the worldwide Cure in Endgame has taken place in my fan fic. The story just continues on from there, fast forwarded about six years. Noah is now in his final semester in college, and Rex is still with Providence.

I know the worldwide cure has deactivated nanites, so there not many chances for Rex to be jumping into action. But hey, White Knight did mention at the end that everyone was still not nanite free.

And since I really enjoy the concept of rouge nanites and nanite-controlling powers, I've tried to weave that back into the story. I think it feels more like Rex's world this way. Hee hee.

And on top of that, I'll be introducing new villians too, just to give a little variation.

PS: Main coupling here is Rex Salazar X Noah Nixon. Because I think they are funny and cute together –they make a really good pair, don't you? ^_^

You have been warned, so don't read if you hate the idea of Rex getting with Noah.

PPS: And yes, hee hehe, I made up this whole fan fic just so that I can relieve my fangirl, yaoi fantasies. Pls read if you are unhealthy like me. XD

Otherwise, if you wish to retain your purity of soul, hit the 'back' button on your browser before these immoral words stain your soul. I repeat, you have been warned.

PPPS: Of course, there will be plenty of smex. But in the later parts.

THIS IS THE LAST TIME THAT I WILL TELL YOU THAT YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Continue only if you're ready to enter the debauched and wayward world of grinding hot smex and lascivious, wanton bodies between MEN. There will be no saving you from the sinful pits of licorice randy. You will henceforth, forever be corrupted once you lay eyes on these wicked writings. Heh heh. *+v+*

If you are already lecherous and can fall no further down the spiral of vices, then I welcome you in open, depraved arms, my fellow sister, my brethren, to partake in this decadent feast and read these like your holy words. B-]

Enjoy! ^_^

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 **Chapter One: Kiss to Win**

(Spring. Rex visits Noah at the college fair.)

Noah was a crazy guy.

As in a non-skilled, untrained, non-official Providence agent who still rushed head-long into battles as Rex's sidekick –kind-of way.

Okay, okay, so to be fair, in the six years Rex had known him, he had to admit Noah Nixon had some mad skills at table tennis, basketball, console games, and was a natural with a machine gun.

They've come a long way from those days of fighting EVOs, and tackling the Consortium and other crazy wackos who tapped into advanced machine warfare.

But over the last three years Noah had been in college, Rex found himself surprised by the new things he learned about his best bud.

Like A: Noah –at about five foot ten –has added 'the shortest basketball star to ever dominate his college' to his resume, since the rest of the players were all over six foot like Rex.

B: He has accumulated fans of nearly everyone on campus since his debut as Romeo in his end-of-year drama assessment during his freshman year.

And C: He's the number-one guy on campus whom girls want to kiss.

The long line of female fans at Noah's kissing booth was utterly ridiculous, especially since they each had to pay five bucks for a peck. Although Rex never went to college, and so didn't know about the different social ladders, he was pretty sure that there were ladies of all social statuses eyeing for his lips.

From the regular, average chicks or plus sized ones in simple skirts or jeans and plain tops, to athletic ones in their sneakers, or cute, petite types, and even the mega bombshells –Noah was like the bachelor of every girl's dream.

Someone should really make it illegal to cheat girls out of a kiss, even if it was for fund raising for the school. It really wasn't fair since Noah was obviously getting the better end of the deal. Or maybe Rex just thought that way because he was just jealous. It annoyed him that he never got any kisses for rewards even though he had saved countless of girls –much less get paid.

Here Rex Salazar, the world's greatest hero, who'd saved the world time and time again, entered the campus compounds without a single note of fanfare. One would think the Master Nanite Controller, who'd miraculously deactivated Nanites world over, would be recognized without his trademark nanite builds.

But no, without them, he was just another ordinary guy who couldn't compare to Noah. Jeez, at least it would have been great if Rex's handsome looks could command at least some attention.

When Noah told him about the kissing booth Rex gallantly decided not to crash in with his full nanite sleekness. Hence, he'd opted for a less flashy entrance, ditching his hover-bike outside the campus entrance, before coming in like a regular guy. But seeing Noah now with a throng of free kisses, he was starting to see green, and wondered if he should have dropped in on the middle of the fair with his jet pack instead.

Rex had trouble keeping his face expressionless as he closed the remaining yards across the large quadrangle where the campus fair was held. He weaved in between knots of people grouped together in front of other booths that held less interesting activities.

There were classic games like ring toss, shooting bottles, spin-a-wheel –all designed to leech the money out of people's pockets since those set ups were probably rigged such that the visitor would never win no matter how many times they try.

Still, the visitors, who looked around his age –probably most of them being college students themselves – seemed game to try. Animated chanter and cheers filled the place, with everyone lively and looking like they were having fun.

"You're late, Rex!" Noah yelled when Rex was a few steps from him and waved him over to his booth, where his next words were gobbled up by the lips of his newest customer.

Rex made a face at the garish red lipstick slobbered over Noah's face when he was released five seconds later.

"You're missing all the action," Noah added and was about to clean his lips with the Kleenex next to him, when he was attacked on the lips by the same girl.

She was a brunette. Prettier than the average girl, she would have looked compatible with Noah, except that she was acting like one freaky, possessive chick –and Rex didn't want that for Noah, as much as it was amusing to watch.

Noah clearly had the short end of the stick in this case –the girl looked like she was sucking the life out of him, fisting Noah's golden hair in a painful grip.

"Hey! No hogging!" a pissed-off girl behind yelled, prompting another to also protest.

By the time Despo Chick released Noah. He was blue in the face and looked like he needed proper CPR.

Noah stepped back and coughed, probably because he was choking on her saliva, and gave a bland smile.

"Well, that kind of invigorating action I can do without," Rex taunted with a mean smirk. Arms folded across his chest he leaned at the side of the booth.

Noah stared icy daggers with his cerulean blue orbs and wiped the lipstick off his mouth.

"Oh, Noah! My Romeo, another one!" the desperate girl exclaimed before smacking another five on the booth and lunged forward for Noah.

Rex would have gladly thrashed her if she was an out of control EVO. But since she was just one of another case of Noah's fans obsessed with him after his epic portrayal as Romeo in his school's drama performance, Rex just grinned at his buddy's misery.

After all, popularity came at a price.

Besides, it was just too damn funny.

But when the girls behind grabbed Despo Chick's arm and started shouting, Rex quickly stepped in between them before a catfight broke out.

"Hey-Hey, ladies. I know Noah's a stud, but let's play nice and share him, alright?" Rex tried to calm them down.

"Please, Noah is my dream man! I've waited all year to do this! This is his senior year, too –my last chance!" Despo chick exclaimed.

Rex didn't want to resort to unorthodox means of control, but there was nothing else he could do unless he wanted to cause a scene by physically stopping her.

Much to his surprise however, Noah laughed lightly and quirked a brow, saying, "Okay then, but you have to promise to let me breathe."

Then Noah leaned over to kiss her again.

Rex shook his head and chuckled. Despite acting like the resident flirt, Noah was actually really sweet. Well, to girls, at least.

Half a minute later, Noah pulls away, but Rex could tell that Despo Chick was still unrelenting.

So Rex did a little trick he learned since the time he discovered he'd the Omega-1 Nanite inside him.

Not being the scientist his older brother was, Rex didn't know how it was possible, but he discovered if he focused and thought really hard, he could get nanites to listen to him. It was as if the invisible, electromagnetic channels were completely open to him, making it easier to 'talk' to the nanites inside people's bodies. If he concentrated hard enough he could possess a limited amount of control over them.

Just like how he jolted 'awake' just enough nanites inside the girl and ordered them to influence the electrochemical signals in her brain to control her motor movement.

And just like that, she was abruptly turning around and she'd be miles away before the nanites would automatically shut down, snapping out of her semi-trance, and she realizes that she had been walking away against her will.

It sounded daunting, but Rex did have limitations on his abilities, and how much influence he had over other people's nanites. If there were too much static or electromagnetic interference, he wouldn't be able to connect with nanites from other bodies without direct contact. And even without such interference, he had to be standing close by, within a few steps, in order to do so.

Hence this ability fell short whenever he was in a room plugged with a phone or an internet router or anywhere that has strong wireless signals. The open grounds were generally clearer from these types of interference, which was why he could influence Despo Chick's nanites without much difficulty.

Unfortunately, it also readily gave him a shitty headache –influencing three or five people, whether through direct contact or standing close by, was just about his limit before his brains start to pound like a sledgehammer going through it.

Also, he found his abilities weren't strong enough to affect EVOs like the Consortium. He tried several occasions when they battled, but it would seem that as they had conscious control over their active nanites, they could overpower Rex's commands, which stands to reason since Rex had not been able to cure them either.

Noah gave a bland smile at Despo Girl's exit, and then speared Rex with a glare, showing his distaste at what the EVO had done. Rex knew Noah would recognize the telling signs of when he used his nanite influence. Rex rarely did it, even in battle, but Noah had witnessed it a few times before on harmless occasions.

In the few instances when Noah seriously expressed his outright dislike were about Rex's newfound abilities. Rex understood why. It was terrible to control someone against their will, like those inhibitor collars* that were placed on EVOs back when Black Knight was in charge of Providence.

Besides, Rex was not about to turn into a control freak.

He used it, only and if, it were absolutely necessary. And Rex knew Noah trusted him not to abuse his powers. Still, neither of them liked it when he did.

At least for this time, Rex was sure Noah didn't think he went completely overboard, since he didn't say anything when the girl appeared to take a sudden about turn and leave.

So Rex merely forced a smile and whispered, "You're welcome," before the next girl ungraciously elbowed Rex out of the way.

"Hey, jeez, not like Noah's the only stud around here. What about me?" Rex grumbled under his breath in annoyance.

Noah must have heard him because he gave Rex that cocky smile of his, with one corner upturned in a devilish manner, which he always does when he wanted to challenge Rex.

"Oh, jealous pal? It's not your fault that you're not born a star like me."

"No," Rex made a face, "but I was engineered to be one. Bet the girls will go ga-ga when they see my true superhero form."

"Oh yeah? You wanna bet?" Noah pushed again, in that infuriating manner that drove Rex's adrenaline in a jumping frenzy, sparking him to take on whatever stupid challenge there was, like a blind bee to honey.

Since the first time Rex met him, Noah could always egg him on and rile him into competing with him. What the contest was meant to prove didn't really matter –simply winning was.

Rex could write a list of all the stupid things they've competed over that would stretch across a whole city block.

When they were sixteen, it was normal for them to get in on ridiculous challenges, or at least, Holiday was patient enough to look the other way when they took their contest within Providence Headquarters. But now, being closer to twenty-one, and therefore no longer privileged with given the blind eye like in their younger days, Holiday scolded them more often than not that they were being downright immature.

"C'mon Rex, what's with the stalling? Not confident enough? Why don't you just admit that I'm the hotter guy between the two of us?" Noah pushed again in his cocky tone and that did it.

"Like hell I will! You're sooo on, Noah. The one that gets the most kisses wins!" Rex gave his own swaggering bite before he sent millions of his nanites buzzling into action, constructing a three-tiered platform beneath his feet to raise him to a more attention-grabbing spotlight.

The unveiling of his powers brought in the right effect of fanatic shrieks, gasps, oohs and ahhs. Finally, they recognized him as the nanite-wielding hero.

"Hey! That's cheating! I don't have a freaking stage!" Noah protested.

"Well then, you need to get an upgrade, like me," Rex taunted.

He'd come a long way from the weapons he was limited to creating back in his teens. Since being perfectly in sync with his Omega-1 Nanite, he gradually learnt to generate a variety of other useful constructs and components.

"Hello ladies, the Nanite Master, Rex Salazar, is on the grounds. So step right up for a kiss for the same amount as your resident superstar, Noah Nixon!" Rex announced dramatically through a loudspeaker he quickly generated with his hand.

The stampede and rush of females scampering to line up in front of Rex was glorifying, especially since he stole some of Noah's fans over.

Rex snickered as he heard Noah's loud humph of annoyance.

"Whatever Rex, I had a head start. Game finishes at the end of the fair at five."

Rex gave a thumbs up to agree with the rules and was convinced that this was going to be his best day ever, until his lips started hurting three hours later from all the brutal sucking and nibbling.

Rex had tasted every flavor there was of food the girls had eaten before and the unpleasant combination left in his mouth was almost nauseating. By then, the charm of getting free kisses from hordes of girls faded away.

At times like these, Rex pondered in chagrin at what possessed him to take up Noah's stupid challenge. He was actually starting to dread the line that seemed to never end.

The afternoon sun beat down on them didn't help either. Rex was sorely parched, but he didn't want to waste time getting a drink since Noah didn't take a break either.

A sideways glance at Noah also confirmed he was also feeling the abuse. Noah was slouching against the side of the booth now, with his lips all red and puffy. He probably had it worse since he'd started earlier and there was still almost two hours left.

But they both stubbornly wanted to win –they were similar in that way, among many others, which was why they'd such a tight friendship. Stupid contest or not, Noah wasn't going to give up, so neither was Rex.

Then, a commotion at the end of Noah's line caught Rex's attention.

A couple of guys, four of them, were crowding Noah's fan, shoving her –no correction, _him_ –around. They looked cool and pretty sporty, dressed in jeans and hoodies emblazoned with the school's emblem. But they behaved like typical, rude, arrogant jocks the way that they harassed the poor, skinny twig who looked like he'd easily snap into two if they pushed him around any harder.

"What's this? A guy queuing up for a kiss with Noah? You damn fag, get outta here. Noah isn't gonna kiss a disgusting freak like you," one of them taunted cruelly.

Pushing aside his surprise that even guys wanted to kiss Noah, Rex shook his head, irked that in this day and age, such prejudice still exists.

It was as if some people needed to find an excuse to bully someone now that they'd no EVO targets to hold prejudice against.

Rex stepped down from his stage just as he saw Noah already striding over.

"Hey guys, c'mon, give him a break," Noah stepped between the poor guy and the jocks.

One of them gave Noah a look of disdain.

"What? Don't tell me, you're gonna humor this fag?"

Noah shrugged. "A little kiss ain't gonna hurt anybody."

The goons chortled.

"Oh hear, hear, looks like all-star Romeo boy is switching lanes. Better ditch the line ladies," another sneered.

Rex wasn't amused by the sarcasm dripping from the guy's words and quickly moved towards them.

Noah on the other hand, remained cool and unruffled.

He merely slung an arm over the guy's neck and gave a lopsided smirk.

"Haven't you heard? Gays are secretly all the rage for those ladies who are 'In'"

At that, Noah did the craziest thing Rex had ever seen him do –he kissed the guy fellow full on the lips.

The bullies flinched as if scalded; crying out that it was gross and what not. Then they quickly retreated as if Noah was a contagious infection that they didn't want to catch.

Rex was rooted to the ground a few feet away, jaws dropped open in shock. _I didn't just see my best friend kiss another guy_ , Rex chanted to himself mentally. But fact was he did, and he didn't know what to make of it.

After Noah was done giving the lucky guy his kiss, he must have caught Rex's perplexed expression because he bit his lips in the way he did when he was nervous.

"Rex," Noah paused, sounding a little shaky and ran his fingers through his hair, which was all the clue Rex needed to tell that Noah was bothered –worried about how Rex would see him, maybe even scared that Rex would be weirded out.

Rex quickly shook himself out of his flabbergasted shock and gave Noah a thumbs-up.

"Yo, Noah, that was cool man! But I should have known you'd beat me to standing up for this guy. Trying to steal more limelight from me, eh?"

Noah immediately looked relieved, with a proud smile replacing his nervous one.

"What can I say? Can't stop myself from saving anyone in distress. You showed me that," Noah gave his snappy comeback and they fist bumped before going right back into the competition.

As if Noah was spot on after all, his queue suddenly increased in numbers, of girls as well as guys. It was almost a mirror image of the girls, except in guy versions. They looked like a range of different stereotypes –the bespectacled, buttoned shirt geeks, the brawny health nuts, the scrawny twigs and their opposites, and he'll be damned –even a few whom he recognized from their incredible, towering height, were members from Noah's basketball team.

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"Are you sure you don't want any of this three-combo-taco of lip-smacking awesomeness?"

Rex gurgled for the tenth time that evening, to get rid of the horrid aftertaste of a thousand kisses from all sorts of girls, before answering.

"No thanks, I've had enough of lip-smacking for today."

"Dude, did all that kissing mess up your brain? We're talking dinner here. And three types of juicy meat," Noah tried again as he came up behind Rex in the bathroom and made a show of slowly peeling back the wrapper.

It had rained earlier, before the fair closed, and Rex and Noah got caught in it. So they went back to Noah's dorm room to dry off, but not before Noah dragged him to the café at the East Block to get the tacos they both absolutely loved.

Noah had already wolfed down his share before they reached his room. But it seemed like too much kissing had a negative effect on Rex, making him feel utterly sick to his gut.

Rex pretended to gag. The act wasn't so hard to pull off.

"Actually, yes, it did. I've enough kissing to last me a lifetime. Now, c'mon. Hurry up and finish it, so we can have a few rounds of 'Monkey Kong versus Killer Whale' before the game."

"What's the rush? My Xbox isn't going to run away."

Rex made a face.

As part of the school fair, there was going to be a friendly basketball match tonight with another campus that was Noah's top rival. In between Providence missions, and the few hundred miles distance between Providence Headquarters and Noah's dorms at the campus, Rex couldn't hang out with his buddy as often as he liked.

He was excited to watch Noah at his best in a basketball tournament. It was almost as invigorating as their one-on-one with each other. Besides that, he was also itching to have some fun playing video games with Noah.

He had his own console back at headquarters, but Bobo was too tough an opponent. That monkey has agile fingers at the joystick and controls, and beat Rex so many times that he'd given up.

"Besides, we haven't even compared our stats yet," Noah folded his arms across his still wet clothing and cocked a brow.

Rex groaned internally, forgetting how persistent Noah could be. He walked past Noah out the bathroom and toweled his hair dry.

"It rained twenty minutes before closing time. Did it still count?"

"Hell yeah! Of course, it does!" Noah exclaimed as he followed after Rex.

Rex helped himself to one of Noah's shirts in his closet and threw it at Noah's face.

"Better get changed first before you catch a cold."

Then Rex threw Noah fresh pants. Noah caught both in with one arm, but looked kinda comical juggling them with his other hand still holding the taco.

"C'mon Rex, how many did you score?" Noah bugged as he abandoned the taco on the counter against one wall and stripped his wet shirt.

Rex had no clue.

Since Noah did that wonderful stint with the gay guy, Rex barely noticed the rest of the girls kissing him after that –he practically lost count and stopped counting.

All that captured his attention were the number of guys who queued up at Noah's line and how Noah looked completely cool with it, comfortable even, with them wrapping their arms around his shoulders and neck, stuck to his lips like glue in what seemed like forever.

Not that there was anything wrong, but if Rex had to be completely honest with himself, he did find it kinda weird. Like, if Rex suddenly kissed Claire, Noah's ex-girlfriend, kind-of weird.

Noah wouldn't shut up if Rex didn't have a number, so he gave a rough estimate.

Noah gave an exaggerated look of despair.

"No, no! How could this be? Have I lost my charm? I'm two kisses behind you!"

Rex chuckled at his lucky guess, not like it was really important anyway. He was feeling pretty sick, and wouldn't have cared even if he lost, though he wouldn't admit it to Noah.

"Okay no, wait," Noah dropped one fist into this other palms in realization, "I did kiss that obsessed girl another two times before you made her take a hike. So yes!" Noah pushed two fists in the air like he won some big game, "Now, at least we're equal." Noah had that joking, smug look with twinkling eyes; looking every bit like he enjoyed the game just like every single time whenever he bested Rex at a competition.

It was dumb really, and annoyed the hell out of Rex, but at the same time, it was kinda fun, goofy, and cool, in a weird, comradely game kind-of way.

Rex loved these games, even if they were silly. And even if he currently felt like shit at the end of it. At least Noah had a good time –it made Rex feel like he'd fun too.

And just like that, without much thought, or comprehension on what he was doing except to wipe that smirk off Noah's face and get one up on him in this contest, Rex closed the three steps between them and pressed his lips onto Noah's.

A slight flinch and a tiny hitch of breath told Rex that Noah was completely caught by surprise. But Noah was not repulsed by Rex's sudden action, instead, started to lean in deeper, tilting his head just a teeny fraction so their lips melded into each other's grooves better.

Rex ended up being the one stunned and he pulled back a hair's length, breathing deeply.

Noah stared at him, eyes wide with an unfathomable gaze, shaky breath hot against Rex's swollen and sensitive lips.

Rex sort of jumped over the couch, suddenly seized by the desire to flee, as if he could erase his mind off the crazy thing he just did.

Why did he kiss his best friend?

His mind was scattered, and then he remembered.

"Hah! I win. I stole that kiss from you, so score one for me," Rex threw over his shoulder, and busied himself by plugging in Noah's Xbox, mentally calming down his insides that suddenly seemed to go haywire.

Rex expected some witty comeback or mock, enraged insult but there was none.

Noah was dead silent –scarily quiet. It unnerved Rex and suddenly he regretted his stupid move.

Just as he turned around, mind scrambling for some lame joke to ease the sudden tension, Noah had disappeared into the bathroom, shutting the door with a resounding thud.

Great. Smooth move, Rex.

Rex started getting jittery. Was Noah going to hate him now? Because they kissed? But Noah seemed cool kissing those fifteen other guys. Or maybe it was some line they'd crossed, which they shouldn't have as buddies.

He couldn't dwell on it, as his providence communicator tucked over his ear, beeped.

"Rex, come in," Six's voice came through the device.

"Yea, I hear ya, Six."

"Strafield County. A dairy farm owner has reported on his cows rolling over, sick. Our GPS shows you're the nearest to the location so we need you to go over for investigation."

Tch. What bad timing. Rex was going to have to miss Noah's game… again.

"Woah Six, you should know I'm no vet. How about Holiday, or one of her assistants?"

"A few of the cows show signs of abnormalities. We don't know how quickly it would escalate, so you had better get over there. Pronto."

There was urgency to Six's tone, and Rex couldn't ignore it.

"Right, got it. Send me the coordinates, and I'll be there in thirty."

"Noah," Rex called out, "I gotta go-"

Noah flung the door open before Rex could finish, towel wrapped round his hips.

"Providence?" Noah lifted a brow.

"Yeah, sorry man," Rex grimaced, feeling bad for ditching their plans. Noah never complained; which was probably why Noah was still his best friend outside of Providence. "This time, we're losing cows at the farm. Six says I'm the closest, so he's sending me to check it out."

"No sweat, Rex. Saving our supply of juicy beef is more important. I need my protein to shoot hoops," Noah shot him a smile and gave him a thumb's up.

Rex grinned, relieved that the apparent weirdness between them had disappeared. Perhaps he was even over-thinking it.

"Now, that's the irony, saving the food… to save our food."

Rex joked and returned the thumb's up before he ran and jumped out the window, sending a zillion of his nanites into constructing his turbine wings.

In a flash, the propellers roared into life, spinning at full blasts and giving him lift before he hit the ground. Then he was off, zipping ahead a few hundred miles away.

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

 ***inhibitor collars:**

Shown in season three; an upgraded version of the original collar used by Providence that used to limit EVOs from unleashing their full power. The new ones commissioned by Black Knight were able to brainwash EVOs.


	2. Relapse

Sorry all, been a long time since my update. Busy busy times, you know? I'll try to work faster. X_X

Here's a new chapter!

 **Chapter Two: Relapse**

(Evening. Rex heads over to check out the dairy farm in Strafield County)

The sun was setting, getting dark but Rex's enhanced goggles have night vision, giving him a clear view of the landscape below. Furthermore, there were navigation compass and a mini-map locator broadcast before him, showing him the directions. As he neared, bright spotlights encircling a large, fenced area the size of a few football fields, revealed the tormented scene below.

Tens over thousands of pounds' worth of premium beef rolled over their sides, many moaning in agony. Rex scanned the open-field farm where a dozens of cows were enclosed within.

He landed right next to an old guy and a young woman who was kneeling next to one of the ailing cows, checking on its health.

"I'm Rex, Providence. I'm not a vet, but maybe I can help?"

"Well lad, I hope you can. Because I'm the owner and a vet myself but I can't find anything amiss. They just fell over all of a sudden, crying like they were in pain, acting sick but I could find no signs of disease."

Rex looked over the decidedly larger slump before them and noticed something odd.

"And yet this one has three horns," Rex drawled.

"Oh this is mild," the woman said, "We've got one quarantined that has grown an extra-"

She suddenly screamed, jumping back.

Rex and the owner were both taken back too.

A lump of flesh suddenly protruded from its back, growing at rapid speed and accompanied by a sick, squashing sound of a mutated alien trying to force its way out. Then a hoof appeared and the growth abruptly stopped.

"-leg," the owner finished for her after five seconds of stunned silence.

"Eww, that's one messed up looking beef," Rex commented, spine tingling.

Since the worldwide Cure, they haven't come across any EVO relapse in six years.

 _Please, oh please, oh please…it can't be_

Rex put a palm to the beast and nearly recoiled at the all too familiar buzz of rampant nanites he could sense inside it.

Hell, he'd thought what he did, was permanent. It was supposed to be.

"Six, Holiday?" Rex couldn't keep his voice from being shaky.

"What's wrong Rex? You don't sound good," Holiday could tell.

"EVO relapse, doc."

He could hear Holiday's gasps at the other line, then she fell quiet.

Despite having their communication lines open, it was as if they went into radio silence for half a minute.

"Our back up is already en route. Estimated time of reaching is in another thirty minutes. Meanwhile, cure them, Rex. Don't let the situation escalate further," Six ordered, tone calm and collected like he usually was. But Rex could tell that Six's thirty second delay in issuing the command, probably meant that he was equally shocked.

"Already working on it, boss."

Rex linked with the rampant nanites within the half-mutated beast but instead of merely extracting the active nanites like he used to do, he fired the switch to deactivate them.

Even though the EVOs have stopped appearing for six years, Rex never ceased to polish his abilities. His genius older brother, Caesar, was the one who suggested that it may be possible for Rex to deactivate nanites within the hosts' bodies. In this way, Rex would not risk assimilating an overdose of rouge nanites. Hence, from time to time, Rex trained himself, using the off-load facility at *Purgatory until he managed to successfully accomplish what Caesar had predicted.

The odd leg shrunk back into the bull, causing Rex to shiver inwardly at the sickening sight. It was like those sick, sci-fi movies about alien invasion –in this case, Nanite invasion.

"Phew, so that's one cured beef. How many do we have left?"

Rex planted his fists and scanned across the field.

"Fifty-"

A monstrous roar that sounded like a dozen bulls combined, resounded through the field. Several of the cows that were well enough, cried moos of frenzy and started tottering off.

Then the ground beneath their feet started shaking as if an earthquake was coming upon them.

"Oh no, don't tell me, that bull we'd quarantined earlier," the owner sounded fearful, staring past Rex.

As Rex spun round, his eyes widened to see clouds of dust kicked up by a gigantic, stampeding bull with what looked like six legs.

Instinct took over in a flash. Hot blood pumped full of a potent mix of adrenaline and nanites rushed to his arms, encasing them in a pair of giant, barrel-like heavy-hitters which he dubbed as Funchucks.

"Get outta here! Go!" Rex yelled.

The owner and his assistant didn't need to be told twice –they scampered away as quickly as they could, face as white as sleet.

Rex held his ground and supersized his feet and legs seconds before the Minotaur-like EVO rammed into him. He shielded his head and chest from the damage by holding his Funchucks before him. But the impact send his bones rattling and his metal feet dug inches backwards and into the ground.

Minotaur's butted his massive skull madly, grinding its impressive horns against the sides of one of his fist construct. Strength pit with strength, Rex strained under the tremendous force. It was like pushing against a freight train with a kamikaze driver.

But Rex was stubborn and kept his place until the EVO reared on its hind legs and brought its four massive hooves crashing down atop his arms.

The powerful force would have broken his arms if he hadn't had his nanites wrapped around them like a metal armor. Still, the impact was enough to bring him to his knees and shatter his focus.

He dropped his Fanchucks but quickly rolled away before the EVO could crush his skull. In a flash, he brought out his whip, grabbed its two hooves from under it and sent a bolt of electricity racing from the supercharged dynamo pack that grew over his back, causing it to crash heavily onto the ground.

Rex took the chance immediately, lunging forward with his palms spread out on its flank to attempt another connection. But scalding steam burst from potholes that suddenly opened along its side, forcing Rex to jump backwards.

He cursed in pain at the heat that swallowed his arms, but the pain quickly subsided, thanks to the nanite interference inside him, which somehow anesthetizes his pain receptors to a certain extent.

Able to refocus on the battle, he repeated his stunt with his electric whip, but the EVO suddenly grew metal spikes on the tips of its tail like an oversized mace and the electric shock seemed to harmlessly dance and crackle all along the EVO's body till it collected at the spiky end.

"Shit."

"Rex, what is happening?" Holiday's anxious voice came over his communicator, "Your nanites are unusually active. Readings haven't been this high in a while."

Rex ducked as the beast swung its tail above him, then dived out of the way before it swung back to club him.

"Yea, well, I haven't fought an EVO since fighting the consortium months back," Rex said dryly between pants and rapid dives and jumps to avoid being clubbed to death.

This wasn't working. Rex knew that he wouldn't be able to keep up the dance much longer. He'd a tough time juggling six limbs, two mega drills for horns and a badass spiky tail. For a hulking mass of muscle and meat, the EVO was surprisingly fast. Rex couldn't get close enough or get a window time long enough for him to cure the EVO without taking hits.

And he has taken enough damage to feel the slack in his movements and the feebleness of his nanite weapons. Rex was getting exhausted. Now, where was the backup when he needed them?

"Uh Six, any update on that backup?"

"E.T.A in another ten."

"What? I thought it's past due. Seriously, we need to upgrade the plane engines."

"You never wait around for them anyway. You're the Action, Rex. Your biometrics are falling. Get them kicking back up. Holiday is worried," Six's flat tone came over.

Rex grunted.

"Aww, thanks for your soothing words, Six, just what I needed."

Rex seriously needed to change his game plan.

He powered his legs and sprung a few hundred feet into the air, intending to smash the EVO like an insect.

Instead, the EVO caught his super powered boots, puncturing through the tough steel and throwing him to the side. Rex slammed against the ground and continued ploughing a few yards in the dirt.

He sputtered dirt from his mouth and groaned, body protesting in hurt and pain. But he had no respite as the EVO thundered towards him. Rex forced himself to rebuilt his power boots within a second and leapt a few hundred feet away.

Then the EVO took a U-turn, following him.

 _Okay, then, let's try the old fashioned way._

Rex put out his Funchucks before him again but before the EVO could smash into him like battering ram, Rex leapt out of the way, elongating his arm and swinging his heavy hitters into the Evo's head.

He didn't want to have to do this, but he couldn't find better ideas, so he reprogrammed his nanites, switching to his deadly sharp, energy axes and swiftly chopped off the EVO's spiky tail just as it crashed and sent the ground trembling.

The EVO let out a ferocious roar, most probably of pain and anger.

 _Sorry beefy, just hang on a second._

Rex recalled his axes and let loose his giant electric whip before it could get up, giving the EVO a massive shock with every ounce of power he could spare.

Finally, the EVO collapsed, slumped form unmoving.

Rex panted heavily to properly catch his breath for a few moments. Then he closed the gap, careful to avoid the steam gushes along the way and touched its head to cure it.

He sat back on his bum, relieved that his work was done, until he remembered that he had another fifty plus more bulls to cure before they turned in Minotaur number two.

As if on cue, a scream pierced the night.

 _Oh no, the owner and his assistant!_

Rex forced himself to channel out more nanites beneath his feet and sped towards the direction of the scream on his Slyder.

He stopped by the two who had fallen midway while struggling up a slope.

The cows that had ran here were starting to mutate as well, vomiting limbs like a disgusting alien film.

"Right, how many cows did you say you had again?" Rex asked the owner humorlessly.

The owner's reply however, became muffled by the roar of an approaching plane engine.

Rex glanced up to catch Six jumping down roughly thirty feet from the plane, in his trademark green suit, landing lightly on his toes like a ninja.

"Good timing Six, I was missing you."

"How many have you cured?"

"Two," Rex held up his fingers.

Six arched a brow, signaling his displeasure.

"Hey, it was one in mid transformation and one mega-mondo-Minotaur from hell!" Rex defended.

"Save your report for later," Six commented and drew out his deadly katana, "We have a lot of work to do."

"Hey, hey, be careful the leg! Not that leg!" Rex screamed as he watched Six about to slice a mutated cow that was rearing up and looking more EVO than cow.

Six turned his head round and lifted a questioning brow. The team of providence agents who just touched ground, gave him confused looks as well.

"I mean, don't go cutting off the real leg," Rex clarified.

Six merely nodded and proceeded to hack away all the extra body parts that should not exist.

* * *

"Morning, or should I say, Afternoon, Rex. How are you feeling?" Holiday asked when he entered the medical lab.

"Like I'm still run over by mondo-Minotaur."

"That's not good, your regenerative nanites should have repaired your damaged muscle and tissue cells. After a night's rest, you shouldn't feel any pain," Holiday gave him a worried look and waved over to the bio-scanning unit, "Why don't you lie down and let me run another scan on your nanite functionality."

Rex gladly did so, making a good show of groaning and moving like an old man till he laid on the medical bed.

A scanner attached to a top beam above him started moving down his body and back up again, casting a bluish light over him.

"Hmm, seems like all stats are normal, Rex," Holiday relaxed her brows in relief.

"You sure doc? Because it sure feels like my back is still pounding. And I'm starting to get a little dizzy."

Holiday arched one brow questioningly at him, "Are you sure you are not just whining for attention?"

"No way, Holiday! I'm serious, could be a major, undetected case here! Perhaps you should run a few more test and put me on medical leave for a day –no, three days!"

The dark-haired chief research officer of Providence gave him a 'quit-being-a-baby' smile and returned to her work.

"Doc," Rex whined, "Doccccccccc."

Holiday let out a sigh and massaged her forehead.

"Rex, would you please? I'm trying to connect to Caesar."

"And I might pass out in any minute."

Well, not really, but sometimes, Rex liked to annoy Holiday into coddling him. Particularly after unexpected battles or situations that throws him out of balance –like the incident with the EVO cows the night before. And especially on another Noah-less weekend like today.

Holiday hit the redial on her keyboard and dragged out another sigh. She seemed vexed by Rex's childish demeanor and the 'connection failure' message that flashed on the giant screen.

"Really Rex, and I'm going to pass out if you don't grow up ten years in this instant!" She banged the redial again, jolting Rex.

"Whoa there, doc, chill. Don't get your blood pressure up."

Six entered mid-sentence and gave a long look in Holiday's direction. The slight downturn at the corners of his brow and lips were the only clue to tell Six's concern.

"Still have trouble reaching Doctor Salazer?" Six asked, crossing the spacious, white ceramic room.

"It's like he's off scaling down the mouth of some volcano," then she gave Rex an accusing glare, "Why is your brother so hard to contact?"

"Don't know. Maybe he's really on a volcanic expedition. Maybe the volcano's about to blow so connection is bad."

*In the last six years, his older brother have remained with his team members, Dr. Peter Meechum and the ghostly remains of Dr. Gabriel Rylander, from the original Nanite Project. They travel around the world in their pursuit for science and research, using Caesar's research pod as their base.

"This is serious Rex, I need his professional opinion on the relapse cases from yesterday. We are looking at a possible repeat of history, worldwide."

Rex shut his smart mouth instantly, feeling bad. Not like he didn't know how serious it was, but telling bad jokes was just his way of coping with the terrible feeling in his gut. He'd a restless sleep, tossing and turning, dreaming of the whole world screaming and shaken up from EVOs again.

"Take a break, Rebecca. You had a late night and started the day early. Come back in thirty minutes, maybe the connection will improve."

As if on cue, the connection was established and a half-static, fuzzy image of a glowing, reddish wall came into view. The video was almost nauseating, with the camera bobbing and moving and being utterly unstable.

Holiday tried adjusting the video controls on her side, but it proved that it was Caesar's video camera that was jerked about violently.

"Uh, Caesar? What are you doing? Where are you? Why is your camera shaking so badly?"

Heavy pants could be heard against the deafening roar of what sounded like thunder rolling low and grumbling.

"Sorry-can't talk," his older brother sounded winded.

"Bro? What's going on?" Rex shot up from the medical unit and strode up to the screen, chest squeezing in worry.

The camera swung upwards to meet thick smog sinking down, washing the screen to zero visibility.

"Just climbing out the mouth of a volcano."

Rex's jaw dropped.

He would have laughed at the spot on accurate guess, if it was not so completely life endangering.

"You did not just say you were climbing out the mouth of a volcano," Rex repeated dryly, mind going numb, "Why were you down there in the first place?"

Before they could receive a reply, a crack line split the video in half then the screen went completely static.

Rex cursed aloud and his Slyder was out under his feet in a hop.

"Wait, Rex, don't be brash. You don't know which volcano your brother is in," Six was in his way in a flash, holding Rex's arm in a firm grip.

"There are currently three isolated volcanoes in active eruption right now," Holiday fired off, pulling up several data reports onto the screen, sounding shaky.

"That's all I need-"

 _-Bzzt-_

"Sorry, hope I didn't scare you. My camera was hit by a rock, but I'm fine. I'm at the top waiting for pick up in half a minute. Talk to you in a while."

Relief washed over Rex at the broadcast and he forced himself to keep his head cool, setting his feet on the ground. He was seriously worried over his older brother's safety. Caesar was a crazy case who'd put himself in dangerous situations in the name of science.

They waited anxiously for another two minutes or so before Caesar came into view, wiping the sweat off his face. He looked another shade darker, like he'd been out under the Sun a lot. His hair that was as jet black as Rex's, but longer now, looked wet and matted down the sides of his face. His goatee was longer than Rex had last seen as well, but looked funny as it was plastered underneath his chin.

"Brother! You're alive!" Rex would hug the giant screen if he could. "You crazy scientist! Are you trying to become a ghost like Doctor Gabe?"

Caesar gave a rueful smile.

"Unfortunately, there is no way to assemble my neuron-electro composition should I die in this scenario. Fortunately, the others have managed to get me in time."

In the background, *Meechum could be heard grumbling about how he got cheated out of his retirement plans for a death-defying experience and complaining about Caesar's insane stunt.

Rex couldn't agree more and wasn't satisfied with his brother's reply. But he decided against asking why Caesar's team was undertaking such a huge risk. He could never get crazy scientists. And well, all that matters was that his brother was safe.

"It's good timing too –we need your expertise on a group of EVO relapse that occurred last night," Six commented.

Then Holiday joined in after expressing her relief that Caesar was unharmed.

Caesar's eyes widened at just the slightest bit, but showed no other signs of shock, or surprise, or any other emotion except to look deep in thought, which was highly typical of him. He maintained his silence until Holiday and Six were done briefing him on the situation.

"Hmm, interesting," Caesar pinched his chin in his classic fashion.

The group debated for a while on a couple of possible scenarios. Then Caesar requested if he could drop by to have a sample of the body fluids of the relapsed Cows. The combat division Providence agents who helped to round up the EVOs for Rex to cure before doing clean up and damage surveillance, had taken plenty of blood samples for further study. Hence, Holiday approved, saying that having the original Nanite Project team looking into this would help to make her feel more at ease.

As soon as Caesar went offline, Six cleared his throat.

"I don't think that it was wise to share Providence Intel with outsiders."

"Well, then, so you doubt my intelligence in making this decision?" Holiday challenged, her fine brow raised into a high arc.

Six cleared his throat again.

"So long as this doesn't get to White Knight," he relented then left the room, much to Rex's amusement.

Rex snickered softly, knowing the soft spot that Six had for Holiday. Holiday caught his snicker and gave him a questioning look.

"I think he should make the smart move and just propose to you already."

Holiday gave him the look she always gave when he was saying something immature.

"What?" he shrugged, "I'm just saying, you two have been the unofficial couple, dating in like forever yet your relationship is moving as slow as a car low on fuel…or is the spark lost already?"

"Wow," Bobo's loud, nasal voice floated in from the door whilst he ambled in, "Is she supposed to take relationship advice from the guy who couldn't hold Circe down?"

"Hey!"

Bobo's 'enigmatic' sarcasm bit Rex.

It was Holiday's turn to laugh.

"Not my fault she has commitment issues," Rex defended, crossing his arms.

"Boo hoo, then you need to retake your PHD in relationship 101 before you're qualified to give others advice, Love Doctor."

Rex scowled at his sidekick. Bobo was a great pal whom he could always trust on for help. At the same time, Bobo was the resident jerk who liked to make people around him the butt of his jokes.

Good thing for Bobo, he went out the medical lab before Rex decide to tackle him.

"Rex, do you still miss her? You haven't completely gotten over her, have you?" Holiday asked gently, becoming all serious and big-sisterly-like now.

Rex flinched slightly.

"Well, yes, I mean no, argh! What was I going to say again?" Rex fumbled for words. He didn't like bringing Circe up.

The one and only girl he had dated and loved so much and with whom he had been through so much with, left him at the end.

It happened last summer, a little over a year ago, when she finally told him that they were through. Rex knew that it was coming, but he kept hoping against hope, that she wouldn't end their relationship.

The problem was that Circe was cured, while Rex wasn't.

Circe wanted a normal life, but with Rex, life was everything _but_ normal.

She'd never really vocally demanded that he leave Providence, but Rex could read her disappointment and worry every time that something came up.

Contrary to how he often behaved, acting insensitive, brash and completely clueless when it came to relationships, Rex did actually know how Circe was feeling even without her telling him.

And she had begun to distance herself from him, months before hitting the sack.

Rex sighed. There was no use mulling or regretting the past.

Unfortunately, the hard truth was, even if he had the chance to turn back time, he knew that he wouldn't quit Providence –not while the world still needed saving.

When the automatic doors opened again, all thoughts of Circe flew from his mind.

"Noah," Rex exclaimed, nearly bounding to his friend, "What are you doing here?"

"Dude, it's the weekend," Noah grinned and shifted his bag pack from one shoulder to the other.

"Yea, but what about your end of semester skit?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention yesterday that it was already over, early in the week?"

"No way! So that means-"

"'Monkey Kong versus Killer Whale' all day today!" Noah joined him and they cried out in unison, slapping their palms together in a hi-five.

Rex was glad.

Noah hadn't been down to Providence for over two months as he'd been busy at rehearsals and preparing for his theatre assessment. But now, this means they'd finally have the weekend mucking about together.

"Boys, please, this is a 'work-only' zone," Holiday gave a mock desperate plea.

"Right, sorry Holiday," Noah apologized sheepishly, then strode over to place a packet on her desk, "By the way, I stopped by to pass you these. My mom baked them yesterday and I picked it up from her early in the morning."

"Wow, that's nice, thanks!" Holiday lit up and grabbed the packet enthusiastically.

Rex followed behind greedily and was about to dip his hand in for whatever it was that Noah's mom made. His mom was great at baking, only that she tended to make everything a tad too sweet. Still, it had been a long time since he had her goodies.

However, Holiday laughed, swatted his hand and took it away from his reach.

"It's all mine, Rex."

Then she shooed them out her lab.

Rex gave Noah a pointed look as they walked along the long corridors to his room.

"Since when does Holiday become so possessive with your mom's goodies?"

Noah laughed.

"Only recently, it seems. She told me Six looked for her to get some on Holiday's behalf."

"Wow, that's completely random."

"Yea, I know. And it's weird because it'd been a way long time before that since I've given them Mom's cookies."

"No, I meant Six becoming Holiday's errand boy."

Noah laughed loudly.

"I thought Six has always been her errand boy."

They plonked onto the neon blue couch once they got into Rex's room.

"Ah, the suite life," Noah gave a sigh of pleasure as he sank himself deeper into the couch, "spacious and quiet and… spacious."

Rex playfully punched his arm as he handed over a can of soda from his mini-fridge.

"Did I detect a hint of sarcasm, hmm?"

Rex's room was sparsely furnished and looked to Rex only a tad better than a prison cell. Every surface of the walls, floor and ceiling were as white as the rest of Providence like that bleached White Knight. The flat screen TV, beanie chairs and tree-pipes were chrome-black.

The monochrome appeal didn't quite settle with Rex, so over the years, he'd begged and pleaded for extra pieces of furniture in bright, funky colors. It wasn't overly dramatic or fancy but it added more vibrancy and made him feel more cheerful.

"Seriously, Rex, you're living the good life here. You know my dorm room is like a closet. Plus, my dorm isn't sound proofed. You know, thumping Elly was at it again last night until three in the morning –three! And I had to get up at five to catch the train."

Rex crooked a brow and couldn't resist laughing at his friend's misery.

Oh, he knows Noah's pain well enough. Over the last three years, Rex has been over Noah's dorm enough times to learn about all the odd weirdo's in Noah's block. Thumping Elly –or elephant for short –was the girl in the room above, who played Japanese para para dance in the middle of the night.

"Yeah, keep laughing, will ya?" Noah sounded agitated, but he dropped that from his tone as he continued, "Anyway, let's get down to business."

"Right, the game."

Rex started hooking up the consoles to the giant flat screen.

"There's that, and of course, your meat report. I hope you'd rescued our future hamburger patties."

Rex kept his eyes on the screen to select their favorite game using the game controller.

"Sure I did –I reverted every EVO pound back to its original, juicy, tender state."

Noah choked on his drink, spilling some onto his shirt. He coughed a few more times as if to emphasize how shocked he was.

"You're supposed to select 'confirm.'"

"What did you say?"

Rex took in Noah's shocked countenance and sighed inwardly. There was no way Noah would indulge him in playing one round before revealing the horrible discovery of the night before.

Rex hoped to put off talking about it –didn't want to ruin the day. Now, every strand of negative thought returned to the forefront of his head.

It blamed his failure, his inapt, his wishful thinking that his cure was permanent. He'd been so freaking disturbed all night and so afraid that the EVO-free world was unraveling.

Out of the blue, Rex felt Noah's palms on his cheek, turning it to face him. Noah's face came close, so close that Rex could feel his warm breath against his lips. It tingled, still over-sensitive from his kissing ordeal the day before.

"You hardly slept a wink last night, did you?"

Rex gave a defeated laugh at Noah's freaky psychic ability –at least when it came to reading Rex's masked distress. Noah didn't need to use biometric readers to know when Rex was secretly feeling down.

"Yea well, it's hard to sleep after fighting EVO relapses," Rex said dryly and leaned back into the couch.

Noah dropped his hands and propped one elbow over the backrest, looking very solemn.

"The cows, you mean, they went EVO?"

Rex sighed and filled him in on the happenings –the slow mutation, the Minotaur and the fight. Good thing the EVO relapse progressed sluggishly –the cows morphed so slowly, they were easily subdued by Providence troops when they came. Once he was done with the Minotaur, Rex went round curing the rest of them easily enough.

"Wow, this should have made headline news everywhere, but since I don't even see it on the web, I guess Providence must have convinced the owner and his assistant to keep quiet, huh? Did they bribe him or something?"

Rex gave a small smirk.

"It was Six who was doing damage control. I think he must have threatened them both."

"Right, makes sense," Noah cracked up, then continued on a somber note, "So, what is Holiday's take on this?"

"Well, inconclusive till she runs further tests on their blood samples. She called up my brother earlier, to get his expertise. So he said he'd be coming by to pick up our samples to investigate as well."

Noah nodded.

"Good call, since Caesar was the kinda the one who made this all happen," then when Rex gave him a pointed look, he quickly added, "Not that it's a bad thing. You happened, and that's cool, but well, for the downsides, I mean, it's not so cool."

"I blame that on Van Kleiss," Rex couldn't keep the vehemence from his tone. Even after six years of disappearance, of not causing any chaos, Rex couldn't forgive his atrocities.

"Hmm, you don't think he has anything to do with this, do you? Could he have retained his EVO-creating powers? I thought Caesar said before, that the chamber explosion would most likely have damaged his nanites severely or have permanently eradicated them."

"Yea, I remember him saying that too, but we don't know that for sure, do we?" Rex stressed.

Van Kleiss had mysteriously vanished without a trace right after the big battle and the epic nanite deactivation that Rex generated. Running through security footages showed Breach teleporting him elsewhere. Providence then made sweeps across the globe for months following the incident, but neither of them could be found.

"And now, we don't know either if this is a sign that EVO relapses are going to start happening world over, damn it!"

Rex punched the armrest agitatedly.

"Hey," Noah scooted right next to him and slung his arm over Rex's tensed shoulder, "That's right, we don't. So until that happens, don't get too worked up about it," Noah tried to ease Rex's stress, "Look on the bright side, at least now we know one good thing from that EVO battle last night."

Rex relaxed a little. "What?"

Noah grinned.

"That you have skills like a professional _Torero_."

Rex broke into a grin at Noah's joke. It was lame, but somehow, coming from his best friend, and knowing that Noah was trying hard to make him feel better, it lifted Rex's mood.

"Hell ya, I so totally do. Maybe I should get into some bull fighting tournament."

Noah laughed and made a sarcastic joke about that, which resulted in playful banter that ran for a few minutes. They laughed in between mock insults, and before Rex realized it, he was already in a good mood.

Then Noah turned serious again, but kept up his smile.

"Besides, even if EVOs start coming back, it'd be okay, because Providence will be there and so will you."

Rex smiled at Noah's positive words, then jokingly asked, "And what about you?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Noah gave him an incredulous look and leaned in.

Suddenly, Rex thought that Noah was going to kiss him, but his friend missed his lips, face barely brushing his. Turned out Noah was just reaching for his control that had dropped by his side. Noah then hit the 'start' button on Rex's controls before leaving it on his lap.

"Now, can we start the game? We have only less than twenty hours to rip each other into shreds before I gotta go back. Unless you're not intending to get any sleep."

Rex gave a crooked smile mirroring Noah's.

"Game on."

* * *

"He's cured them," a man drawled, tone unhappy, "without showing signs of having rouge nanites overload."

He has ghostly pale skin and jet black hair that pooled over the chair like fabric, seemingly melding into the darkness such that it extended his looming presence.

The two scientists trembled before him, one nervously tugging the collar of his lab coat while the other anxiously circled his thumbs together. They know when was it that their boss –or rather, captor –was displeased –they could tell by the grim line of his lips and the piercing look in his eyes.

Furthermore, he rarely called to see them personally, often only needing them to report their progress to his monstrous underlings. That he should request their presence personally, made their teeth chatter in trepidation.

"W-well, at least now we can confirm that the report delivered by the spy is true. Rex has discovered a way to deactivate nanites directly, which is why it had rendered our failsafe nanite multiplication program useless."

The man tightened his grip on the stone armchair, causing faint crack lines to appear.

"Uh what *Dr. Fell means, is that the re-programmed nanites that we have developed, will take time to modify themselves to overwrite the deactivation sequence that Rex had delivered. But I assure you, it will happen."

"How long?"

"A few weeks, at most."

"I hope for your sake, *Dr. Moses, that you are right –for both your sakes, that is. I would hate to see all the work you've done the past few years come to naught," the man threatened, crumbling the edge of the armrest under his powerful, mechanical grip, emphasizing that their end would be the same –disintegrating into dust –should they fail.

Both scientists swallowed hard, legs trembling like jelly.

"And in the meantime, how are your other experiments doing?"

"E-E-Exceed-ingly w-well, Sir-"

"All going according to plan," Dr. Moses interrupted the pathetic stammering of his miserable partner, "As you know, two years ago, we had duplicated the original formula of the nanite enchancement patches and from the reports that your other underlings have gathered, the patches were successful.

Thanks to that, we were able to develop the Remote EVO Activation Serum, which appears to be working well so far. I believe it is only a matter of time that we can gather all the results to achieve your ultimate target."

"Good, but I hope for your sakes that I should not have to wait for much longer."

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Purgatory :

If you recall, it is the Providence base at the South Pacific desert where Rex can extract or store excess nanites or revive his power.

*In the last six years, his older brother have remained with his team members, Dr. Peter Meechum and the ghostly remains of Dr. Gabriel Rylander, from the original Nanite Project. :

I simply continued off from the suggestion made in the very last episode after the whole ordeal. If you recall, Caesar suggested that the team get back together to work on new projects.

*Meechum could be heard grumbling :

In the few times that he'd appeared, Meechum struck me as the type of guy who regretted where his stuck his hand into. =v= I thought it was kinda funny that though he insisted joining the Nanite Project was his worst experience ever and that he never wanted to have anything to do with the team, he looked to be persuaded in by Caesar's new ideas. So I thought it'd be funny to bring up the irony here again, lol. So kudos if you get the joke. X3

*Dr. Fell :

Recap episode 19, 'Promises, Promises', a flashback episode of when Rex first came to Providence. Dr. Fell was then the Head Scientist, but his ruthless and unorthodox means of reverse engineering to find a cure for the nanite problem led to his dismissal. Dr. Holiday subsequently became the new Head Scientist.

*Dr. Brandon Moses :

Recap episode 36, "A Family Holiday."

A genius scientist who discovered a way to reverse EVO mutations, but turned to intensifying their mutations and aggression because it was easier and profitable.


	3. Hired gun

**Chapter Three: Hired gun**

(Nearing the end of spring. A new felon emerges and unexpectedly ticks off another villain.)

Rex entered a scene of destruction.

The factory was ablaze, with broken chucks of concrete scattered around, and the pillars and walls badly battered and crumbling at places. The water sprinklers did little to quell the fire. In fact, it did worse, as the exposed wiring of the damaged, electronic controls and systems, sizzled and cracked and burst into flames upon contact with the water. It added to the bonfire and Rex knew his priority was to turn off the main water valve in this section of the building.

Rex was anxious, getting it done quickly so he could get to the source of the loud, thunderous noise rolling all along the walls he was sure was the cause of this destruction.

Following the direction of the thunder and tremors that continued down the turn, Rex found his destructor, fully decked in a suit with large armored arms coated in royal purple.

Rex gave his customary greetings for these types of fiend with his giant fists packed with zillions of nanite which constructed the form to his will. But before he hit the destructor's back, the fellow spun round and blasted at him with a pair of huge sound speakers embedded at the ends of his armored arms.

A powerful sound wave knocked him backwards a few yards, its deafening boom rocking the brains within his skull. Rex couldn't get up immediately, instead knelt on the ground to steady himself.

"Ah, the world famous Generator Rex, finally, I could meet the savior who ended my EVO days. But excuse me for not saying my thanks, because that was ancient history and I'm not one to dwell on the past," the thunder-maker said sarcastically.

Then he blasted another sound wave at Rex, who quickly brought out his energy shields to block the force.

Curiously, the impact never hit and Rex realized the force shield was somehow able to absorb the sound wave.

Rex grinned and straightened, extending his shield to give better cover as he took measured steps towards the guy.

"Look like you need amplifiers, jerk," Rex couldn't resist taunting.

"Well, good thing I do," the fiend sounded cocky and Rex imagined him grinning evilly under his armored mask.

Then a force akin to a tidal wave blasted Rex, sending him flying back till he crashed into the wall on the far end and fell helplessly on the ground.

Rex groaned in pain, feeling as if every bone in his body had shattered. It probably would have, if it were not for the nanites within his body which strengthened him, making him as tough as steel.

Thunder roared again, so loud it seemed to rock the building. The incredible force compressed the walls of both sides of the corridor, causing an ominous row of cracks to run along the concrete as the sound wave raced down the passage towards Rex.

Rex balled his eyes and kicked himself high up towards the ceiling before the wave hit him. Then he rolled out his giant funchucks and fired a succession of electrified pulses whilst midair.

The thunder-producing manic was quick to launch small sound waves to counter the blows.

Their destructive dance continued. The upper pipes were damaged, ceiling lights were shattered, and machineries were destroyed.

Rex managed to score a few hits with his agile reflexes and quick jumps, shooting at the fiend from opposite angles swiftly. But the other guy was mostly able to dissipate the energy shots by dragging his arms in a circle, causing the sound wave to emanate in all directions.

Neither seemed to be getting the upper hand, until Rex coiled his whip round the fiend and gave him a nasty shock.

The fiend let out a strangled cry a few seconds before releasing a sound blast that destroyed Rex's whip and was powerful enough to knock Rex off his feet a few yards away. The fiend flung an arm out, then cursed loudly when no sound blast were fired.

"Look at what you've done!" the guy roared angrily, "These cost a lot to get from Modifier. Now, you'll pay for damaging the properties of Blaster Prince!"

Rex back flipped to the side to dodge another sound wave which the enraged fiend blasted with his working arm.

"Blaster Prince?" Rex let out a bark of laughter, "Well, I'm Nanite King! And too bad for you, I create my own weapons!"

Rex rolled out his whip again and swung it towards him, but he released a sound wave that was strong enough to crumble Rex's whip.

The fiend cursed aloud before making a run for it.

Rex gave chase, bounding after the other but the fiend jumped and propelled himself forwards by blasting his sound wave backwards at Rex.

Rex got blown backwards and when he regained his footing to continue the chase, he couldn't find the sound-machine anywhere.

* * *

"I'm serious, Noah, this guy is one bad-ass sound machine!" Rex told Noah over his cell phone.

He'd called to apologize for blowing Noah off for the umpteen time since they've known each other. They had plans to catch the latest B-flick horror movie at the theatres near Noah's dorm. But on route, Rex chanced upon an explosion at a factory so he'd to check it out. Right after the battle with the thunder-creating fiend, Rex gave Noah the full story.

"Man, I can't believe I missed all the 'great music.'"

Rex laughed at Noah's lament and sighed inwardly in relief that Noah wasn't upset. Back before Noah moved to a faraway city for college, he used to frequently join Rex in his crazy missions. It was because of the long distance which made it harder for Noah to join him. It always amused him how Noah was such an enthusiastic sidekick.

And secretly, Rex was happy about that. Noah was the only non-Providence friend he had who literally stuck by him like glue. Even Circe couldn't take him putting his missions before her, and dumped him.

"Well, you didn't miss much. He's not that great a 'composer.'"

Rex could hear Noah snorting from the other line.

"Then what was his motive? Did you get any clue besides the fact that he was good enough to slip away?"

"Hey! I was caught off guard, that's all!" Rex protested loudly into the dark skies as he zipped back to Providence on his hover board, "And well, I don't know why he was destroying the Plant, but he did say he got his weapons from someone called 'Modifier.'"

"Sounds like a bona fide high tech weapons maker. Think he could be the lead supplier for some of the past high profile felons with fancy toys?"

"It is highly possible," Six backed Noah's suggestion but his sudden intrusion annoyed Rex.

"Oh hell no, you hacked into our line, again? C'mon Six, have you never heard of the word 'privacy?'"

"You were supposed to report in, Rex. We got reports about a factory explosion and our GPS tracker shows you were exactly in the area."

"I was gonna, okay? But as you would have noticed, Blaster Prince's sound waves were interfering with our comm lines. Plus, he destroyed my communicator when I got hit."

"True, but you obviously still have your cell. If you can't prioritize your calls, I'm going to have to cut your phone line."

"What? No fair! It's my only personal space and reward. To date, I don't even get a salary."

Noah snickered on the other line, causing Rex to complain even more unhappily.

"There, there, don't get your pants in a bunch, Rex. I'll get you a phone line if Six cuts this off. After all, this is the only lifeline we share."

"Careful Noah, don't overstep in Providence jurisdiction," Six warned, and Rex could imagine the strict man with furrowed brows.

Noah was unruffled. He merely laughed and joked, "Haven't I already done that for countless of times?"

In the following week, Blaster Prince struck again twice, at two other factories in neighboring cities.

Rex was pissed that not only was he not able to take him down, whichever of his amplifiers that got taken out, were repaired so quickly.

Six guessed Modifier must be located within distance of all three hits for Blaster Prince to have quick access and repairs.

In debriefs, Six stressed the importance of identifying Blaster Prince's agenda and bringing him in as well as locating Modifier. He explained how Interpol sources had indicated an increased trading of unusually advanced weapons in the black arms race in recent years. They've managed to link several of those firearms to the same individual –Modifier.

"Right, so the next time he shows up, you have to disarm him and get him to talk," Noah summarized, strolling backwards in front of Rex in the cool, evening breeze on a Friday.

Rex smacked a fist into his palm.

"No, it's Providence's job to talk him, after he wakes up from me pounding him till he passes out."

Noah laughed.

"You're really pissed you couldn't beat him, eh?"

"I'm pissed he's almost made me deaf! Do you have any idea how freaking loud his sound blasters are?"

As if on cue, the familiar, ground shaking thunder rumbled in the distance, followed by a loud explosion.

"Is it roughly 'that' kind of loud?" Noah asked dryly as they looked to where smoke started pluming out of a warehouse a few streets behind the burrito café where they'd just had their dinner.

Rex answered by beaming out his energy gliders beneath his feet. Noah jumped aboard like a seasoned act before Rex jetted them off towards the damage.

Rex radioed Six with the 3rd new set of communicators that Providence had given him since crossing paths with Blaster Prince.

On hindsight, Rex shouldn't have let his friend on board –Noah didn't carry any weapons –but he realized too late when the sound wave knocked them in the middle of the sky just before they reached the building, and Noah dropped towards ground.

"Noah!" Rex screamed and quickly extended out his whip, catching Noah and reeling him in whilst he supersized his legs and landed heavily on his jumbo shoes.

"Nice catch," Noah smirked in his arms.

Their relief was short lived as Blaster Prince hit them with another wave strong enough to dismantle Rex's nanite-built power-legs, sending them flying back until they smashed into the wire fence surrounding the factory. Good thing it was Rex's back hitting the fence and not Noah –otherwise he might have his spine damaged. But since he was cradled in front of Rex's chest, he got hit by the sound blast and looked to be semi-conscious, groaning inaudible words.

Rex cursed under his breath at his stupidity. He was too used to getting caught up in the moment and the thrill of having a partner fighting by his side. It was great to have Bobo and Six regularly fighting alongside. But with Noah, it just felt a little different –more exciting and special in a way, since Noah was doing it completely of his own accord and not because he was tied by Providence.

Then when things came to this, Rex would snap out of his initial excitement and remind himself that Noah was a normal civilian, and his best friend so he shouldn't keep letting Noah get caught up in danger like this.

So Rex left his friend lying against the fence while he zipped off along the west side to draw Blaster Prince away.

"You little pest, came back for more, eh? I'm going to end you tonight for always interfering with my work!"

Blaster Prince chased after, continuously releasing sound waves that dug ridges into the dirt.

"Work eh?" Rex shouted over his shoulder, "Well that's one reason for banging up these factories."

Then he suddenly pulled up his hover board, swerving a sharp turn upwards before he re-angled his foot to dive back down behind Blaster Prince in a perfect one-eight-degree loop. He caught the manic in a strangling bind with his whips and discharged a large volt of electricity.

Blaster Prince howled in pain, but it quickly turned into laughter.

Before Rex could register how his discharge didn't shock the manic the way he wanted, another sound wave knocked him backwards and continued slamming him over and over in pulses.

Rex groaned in pain and frustration, pretty beat up and exhausted. His arms shook as he struggled to get up against the force that kept coming to wham him.

"Sorry, Rex, but I've had viable improvements to my gear, including being shock-resistant."

"Well, you damn son-of-bitch, I hope you're fire-proof too," a heavy, electronized southern accent drawled from above, before a torrent of angry orange fire rained down on Blaster Prince.

Rex pulled back his whips and stared stupefied at the contrasting red and blue android looking figure –Meta-Elemental –floating above them on his flaming thrusters at his feet. He was one of the Consortium members who had tried to hijack his Meta Nanites but ended up getting only a fraction of his power over fire and ice.

Blaster Prince cried out in pain for real this time, then slumped onto the ground, groaning.

"Oh, that felt good! But I'm not done with you yet," Meta-Elemental informed snidely, then drew out deadly sharp icy shards out from his palm, aiming for the fallen form.

Rex drew out his own powered bazooka and fired at the Meta EVO's icicles.

"Stay out of this!" Meta-Elemental barked, "This is between me and him."

"Sorry, I'm supposed to take in him alive, not dead."

Meta-Elemental roared in frustration and shot a barrage of icy shards at him.

Rex leapt towards him whilst drawing out his dual large axes with energy blades, slicing off the icicles. Then fire gushed towards him like a flaming serpent, but Rex was quick to shield himself with his force shield before he gets swallowed.

They clashed for a few minutes until Meta-Elemental howled in fury.

"You idiot! He is getting away!"

The Meta EVO promptly ignored Rex and zipped off towards Blaster Prince, who seemed well enough to make a run for it while the Rex was busy fighting the Meta EVO.

Rex took the chance to pound Meta-Elemental's back with his giant fists, slamming the other onto the ground. Before he could land another strike, a giant, fiery hot flaming wall sprung up between them, causing Rex to recoil.

Then he spun his Funchucks in a high speed whirl to fan off the flames but by then, Meta-Elemental was already gone.

"Rex?"

Rex turned to the sound of Noah's groggy voice. He had come over to the side of the building and he leaned against the wall.

"Noah! You okay?" Rex bounded over to support him, winding one arm around Noah's waist and the other support his shoulder.

"I'm fine, just aching all over. Damn, I missed all the action, didn't I?"

Rex gave a lopsided smile.

"Hell ya –Meta Elemental showed up and started attacking Blaster Prince like he had a personal grudge."

"Seriously? Wow, damn, I can't decide which is weirder, that he's attacking another felon or how the both of you have a common enemy," Noah joked, then quickly looked serious, "It does beg the question why. Hadn't Meta-Elemental, or in fact, the rest of the Consortium been really quiet and low key since Gravity-Meta was contained?"

"Yea, but I bet they're planning something," Rex said in a huff as he slowly walked Noah out the premise.

From Meta Elemental's doing, small flames remained, licking the ground and upper walls, sizzling the icy shards that pierced the concrete in jagged arrangements. Adding to the destructive design were pockmarks littering the ground and walls –results from their three-way battle.

Rex groaned inwardly at the damage –he was probably going to take another scolding from White Knight for not reporting in earlier and not being able to keep the damage at minimum. White Knight had been on edge since Blaster Prince's attacks. The Intel department hadn't been able to pre-empt his strikes and Rex failed at capturing him.

Hearing White Knight grumble about the Government breathing down his neck on this matters was more than enough to highlight the severity of this matter.

Rex and Noah made it halfway across the compound towards the front gate, when Noah suddenly pointed to the fence.

"Wait, that's it! 'Inroads and Outboard Transporation,'" Noah read aloud the business plate installed at the top of the fence.

Rex quirked a brow and cast Noah a side long glance.

"Yes, I can read that. What about it?"

"'It's a subsidiary company of 'Global Oil and Mining Industries', as were the other three factories which Blaster Prince have attacked. "

At Rex's blank look, Noah lightly shrugged off Rex's support and put his hands on his shoulders, shaking him lightly.

"It's *Roswell's company –or Meta-Elemental –back when he was still in human form!"

"Holy shit!" Rex exclaimed as he put two and two together, "So that was why he suddenly showed up –to get rid of the guy who was thrashing his company –though I mean, it's not really his company anymore."

Noah nodded.

"Even so, Roswell was the man who built up the company from scratch, so he must be pretty livid to see his hard work get destroyed. Besides, the current CEO of the company is his own son, Donny J."

At Rex's awed look at his well-informed friend, Noah proudly added that he did some research over the week to see if he could come up with any leads.

"So Blaster Prince should be one of his competitors," Rex concluded.

"More like a hired gun," Noah corrected, "I heard him just before he exited. He was cursing aloud something about 'not being paid enough to be bombarded by two nanite freaks at the same time.'"

"That's good observation and thinking, Noah."

Rex groaned, "Sixxxx! C'mon, I thought you promised –no hacking and eavesdropping!"

Six ignored Rex.

"Providence back up will arrive in another ten minutes for cleanup. You should send Noah home and report straight back –holiday is worried about you having another tough night."

"Right, got it. Oh and Six, if Holiday is so worried, maybe you could tell her to convince White Knight to invest in upgrading the thrusters of our jets. They seem to be flying more slowly every day. If they can't reach fast enough to join me at the action, maybe you should change the 'Combat' division to 'Clean Up' crew instead."

Someone cleared their throat loudly from the other line, then started warningly, "Rex, would you like to join Delta Squad with clean up tonight?"

"Oops," Rex gave a nervous laugh as he recognized the voice, "Sorry, Captain Calan. I was just kiddin.'"

Then Rex quickly cut the line.

"So, should we pay Mr. Donny J. a visit and find out from him which of his competitors could have such a vicious streak?"

Rex gave Noah a look of disbelief.

"I thought Six was on speakers, didn't you hear him?"

Noah scoffed, "Hell if he thinks I'll let you play my nanny. Besides, tomorrow's Saturday so it's not like I have to go back to school. I might as well head to Providence HQ with you."

"Well, you were sleeping like a baby earlier," Rex taunted lightly, "But I think what Six really meant was that he didn't want you getting hurt unnecessarily. I mean, you are a regular civilian, you know.?"

"C'mon Rex, Blaster Prince could get himself fixed within the night and strike again tomorrow. Before that happens, we could come up with a list of possible targets and stop him."

Rex gave a lopsided smile, "You know, I like this unusually rebellious Noah who is not listening to Six tonight. But investigations are really more of Six's specialty. Plus, Providence has a team of undercover spies and intelligence agents, who'd gather Intel for stuff for this."

"Yea, but interrogation is your specialty. You're the one with the giant fists!"

Rex mulled it over a second and grinned.

"You're right!"

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Roswell :

A member of the consortium who has big business in oil and minerals. If you recall, in the last two episodes, "Endgame," the Meta-Nanites failed to merge with the consortium as they were specifically designed to only work for Rex. Instead, Roswell received one-fifth of the power and gains the ability to control fire and ice.

I renamed him Meta-Elemental for his new villain name, since calling him Roswell during battles didn't quite bring out his menace and abilities.


	4. A chip of the old block

**Chapter Four: A chip of the old block**

(Last week of spring. A plot is uncovered and Providence races to avert disaster. Rex stumbles onto something troubling.)

Rex was thoroughly impressed at Noah's research.

Noah not only knew where Donny's head office and apartment suite was, he even managed to find out where his second house was.

Their search at the first two places had come up empty, hence they have made their way to a billion-dollar-looking mansion overlooking a cliff at an offshore, private island.

Donny was in his lounge and nearly fell over his armchair in shock when Noah and Rex dramatically flew in from the floor-to-ceiling windows.

He was tall and thin –the opposite of Roswell's stockier form, with thinning blonde hair.

He calmed down when Noah quickly explained their being there.

"I wish I can help," Donny sighed, "But it could be any number of them since my father has made a lot of enemies."

"I can imagine, including running head to head with various crime syndicates, I presume? That's partly how Roswell raised his company so quickly, eh?" Noah pushed, a cutting edge lining his tone, "You sure you aren't feigning ignorance least you expose your involvement as well?"

Donny tensed at Noah's words and continued carefully, "I won't deny my father has his own _methods_ ," –Rex became surprised at Donny's admitting to Noah's out-of-the-blue accusations- "But my assistants can vouch for me that since taking over the company in his absence, I have done everything by the book to the best of my ability. And I have no interest in keeping unsavory contacts."

"That means you don't want to spill who were Roswell's biggest threats. Now that he's out of the picture, the company is yours to do as you see fit."

Donny sighed even louder than the first time, eyeing Noah warily. His lips pulled down deep, showing gaunt cheeks.

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're trying to insinuate. As the appointed CEO, I will do everything in my power to save the company."

"That sounds a bit like Roswell, don't you think?"

"I am nothing like him!" Donny grew angry and banged his glass on the counter, "He is seedy and ruthless. Becoming that super-powered EVO freak is evidence of his power hungry ways. And it was just another way he could throw his weight around me, acting all high and mighty and reminding me that he was powerful while I am not-"

A strange beeping melody started playing and Donny jumped, looking like the blood drained from his face.

"Oh no, he's here."

"Who?"

Before either Rex or Noah could figure out who made Donny look scared out his wits, he hastily shoved them into a secret compartment at one portion of the wall that opened when he pushed down a lamp.

"Shh! Don't make noise and just get in, please!"

Then blackness engulfed them in that tight space that had the both of them squeezed together.

Heavy footsteps could be heard, followed by a gruff greeting in an electronized-sounding southern drawl.

Rex tensed at Meta-Elemental's voice but Noah wrapped his arms around Rex before he could bash open the wall.

"Wait! Let's listen first!" Noah whispered into Rex's ear.

"What? But it's that EVO maniac!" Rex whispered back urgently.

"Who has come to look for his son. Maybe we'll get some clue. No wonder Donny's scared shitless –probably doesn't want the both of you fighting and tearing the house down, or be seen cajoling with his father's mortal pain in the ass."

"I'm not a pain in the ass."

"You are to him, now shush so we can hear what they're saying."

In the next few minutes, all that Noah and Rex could hear were Roswell's loud barking as he insulted and berated Donny J. for being the most spineless successor for the company and how he wouldn't let company properties be damaged by his enemies if he were still in charge.

Rex couldn't help but feel sorry for Donny. Talk about having an overbearing Dad. Rex couldn't remember much of his parents since going into his giant, bio-mechanical form when he was a kid, was too much for his brain to handle and it messed up his memories. Good thing was he did regain a few when he went to full Omega form six years ago. Caesar suspected that since he'd all four Meta Nanites properly installed with his Omega One Nanite, it provided a stable system that synced in harmony with his brain.

And what he did recall of his Dad, were fond and happy. Besides, Caesar also assured Rex that though he didn't seem to inherit their parent's brains, they treasured him and were still proud of him nonetheless.

As the harsh scolding dragged for what seemed like ages, Rex began to feel restless and impatient. It was hot, stuffy and cramped. Sweat was running down his back. And he was starting to feel sticky, especially at where their arms were pressed together.

He started noticing how awkwardly close they were. Their shoulders were squashed together such that they both had to hunch inwards to make room. Their chest and hips were nary an inch apart and when either of them shifted the weight on their legs, they'd touch. And their faces were close enough for Rex to feel Noah's hot breath on his neck.

By now, Donny seemed to have enough and started defending himself instead of remaining quiet. Rex too, had just about enough of hiding.

"I'm suffocating. Can we please get out? I'm going to develop claustrophobia."

"No," Noah whispered sternly, "Just be patient. And quit squirming, you're taking up my space."

"There isn't space enough for the both of us! Better I bust us out and kick Meta-Elemental's butt."

"Don't –we might miss out important Intel."

"What else is there to know? Donny has Daddy issues and Roswell is disappointed with his son. That's all that we've been hearing."

Rex then remembered Noah's accusations earlier.

"Wait, how'd you know that Roswell was in the dirty business?"

"Actually, I didn't. I was making a wild guess to bait Donny out."

"Nice, did you pick that up from acting 101? Like, 'getting into a villain's head' or something?"

"Shh! Listen, Donny is saying something about selling an off-shore oil rig to cut back financial losses."

Meta-Elemental's roar increased in decibel right after that.

"Boy, is he mad," Noah winced.

"I'm gonna be mad if I'm cooped inside here another minute."

Rex was starting to feel a cramp in his leg and shifted around, trying to bring his knee up close enough so he could massage his calf. Instead, he fumbled in the dark, tight space and lost his balance, falling onto Noah.

"Rex!" Noah hissed softly and pushed him flat against the other wall.

"Ouch!" Rex hissed in return as Noah had accidently hit his lower jaw.

Rex blindly felt around to brace himself on the wall so he could regain his footing, but somehow all he felt was Noah in the way.

"Rex! Watch where you are touching!" The frustration in Noah's whisper could be heard.

"Right, sorry, but I can't exactly see."

Then Noah's hand was searching Rex's neck and jaw and running over his lips. The next thing Rex knew, was Noah's lips –hot and moist and soft –on his. Rex blinked in surprise while Noah pulled himself back.

Stunned silence gripped Rex for a few moments.

Then he quietly asked, "Why'd you kiss me?"

"Shut up, I'll kiss you again if you don't keep quiet and don't stop squirming."

* * *

"See, I told you, that was what we'd heard last night."

Rex said pointedly to no one in particular as he threw popcorn into his mouth.

Donny J. was on the primetime morning news and Six was re-playing it on the giant screen in the main briefing room during lunch time.

The news broadcasted that Donny J. had just sold off one of his company's oilrigs off the Gulf of Mexico to one of their biggest competitors –Oceania Oil and Gas Corporation.

Six was concerned that Meta-Elemental would strike hard on the facility to keep his competitor from putting it to good use. It'd be a huge loss for the other party then. And the main problem was that the oilrig was in operation twenty-four hours, with live-in crew and hands on deck at all times. If Meta-Elemental starts spewing his fires about the place, they could be looking at a million barrels' worth of crude oil explosion –deadly disaster.

Six paused the replay, pointedly looked at his direction and Rex imagined his severe glare beneath his glasses.

"And you were supposed to leave investigations to Providence Intel Officers."

"So long as he didn't blow it, I think it was a job well done, for both of you," Calan nodded at Rex and Noah approvingly.

Rex flashed Six his winning smile.

"See! Even Captain thinks we're doing a good job, why can't you be more encouraging?"

Holiday gave a small snicker.

"If you didn't notice, Six was being overprotective, Rex."

"No way!" Rex dropped his jaws in exaggerated shock, "You should have been more honest, Six."

Six remained characteristically quiet on that topic and quickly returned the conversation to the mission at large. They planned to secretly station Providence agents under the Oilrig in a submarine and plant divers alongside the pillars so they would not be detected. Rex and Six and a small team would infiltrate the platform itself and pretend to be one of the crew. So that once Meta-Elemental shows up, they could take him down before any damage could be done. And just in case the situation gets out of control. Captain Calan would lead the air force team to take Meta-Elemental down from the skies.

Rex lamented why the government couldn't just seize Roswell's properties and company holdings the moment the truth was let out that he was part of the Consortium. Then it would save them all the trouble now.

Holiday explained that Roswell's crime was committed as an individual. Unless evidence could be gathered to prove that his company involved in illegal activities, the company wouldn't shut down –only switch directors.

"The question, is whether or not Blaster Prince would also show up," Six posed, then continued the broadcast.

The reporters in the interview asked if Mr. Stone Wallings –the owner of Oceania Corporation –had any fear that Roswell aka Meta-Elemental would come after him. It was no surprise that news stations have also jumped onto the bandwagon about Meta-Elemental's revenge attack on Blaster Prince. The security footages were leaked to the press sometime during the night while Rex and Noah were searching for Donny.

Stone gave a candid laugh and said he'd long discussions with Donny and trusted Donny's judgment on the matter well enough.

"Trust?" Noah made a face, "I wouldn't bet my money on that guy. Looks too shifty to me."

"Donny J. used to work for Stone," Six pointed out.

"Yeah, I know, I read about it –holy shit!" Noah suddenly exclaimed, spilling some popcorn from his mouth. Then he chomped his popcorn quickly and swallowed before continuing, "That's right! Why didn't I notice earlier? It's him –Donny's most likely the one who hired Blaster Prince."

Everyone gave Noah a surprised look, even more so Six, whose eyebrows flew to the top of his forehead.

"I was betting on Stone, actually. If Blaster Prince doesn't appear tonight, it might point to him. And if he does, it'd probably point to another competitor."

Noah shook his head vehemently.

"No, it's Donny, I'm sure of it. An alarm tripped when Meta-Elemental dropped in his house yesterday, but nothing sounded when Rex and I entered. And the moment Donny heard that alarm, he immediately knew it was Roswell and got shit scared. It was like he'd made that alarm especially to warn when his father was coming. Donny's scared of Roswell, and I think it's because he's the one instigating the ruin of his father's company," Noah concluded dryly.

"Woa, woa, let's slow this down a bit. I completely didn't get how you jumped to that conclusion," Rex piped in, confused, "Donny's the CEO, right? So why would he sabotage his own company? And we're talking about him butting heads with his dad."

"Why not? I mean, he probably hates Roswell. You heard their argument yesterday, and before that, the way he talked about his father –it wasn't normal, I could see the hatred in his eyes and it was probably rooted from way back."

Noah continued to explain that a decade earlier, Roswell famously fired his son due to some disagreements on the business direction. Then Donny jumped into Stone's company and worked his way up to Deputy President, before Roswell's partner shareholders persuaded Donny to return to manage the company upon Roswell's transformation into Meta-Elemental.

Rex gave Noah a mock awed look.

"Wow. How did you come upon that revelation?"

"Donny's firing made the headlines."

"You mean you read the newspaper when you were eleven?"

"No," Noah playfully punched his arm, "I spent the last week reading up on it, dummy. And I found out that in the last six years, Donny's been letting Stone buy over his company's stock so Stone is also a minor shareholder now. On top of that, Donny has sold him a few of his company properties. That was why Roswell was so pissed. But I think he didn't realize that Donny had set out to sell away all his company's assets to Stone, from the beginning."

Noah shook his head.

"Sheesh, what a way to stab his old man in the back. It's harsh, even for Roswell."

"Right, so you mean Donny and Stone are both working together against Roswell?" Rex asked, trying to piece together what Noah had said.

"They're intending to end him," Six clarified, nodding his head slowly as if he was also agreeing with what Noah had just said, "Our agents uncovered recent maintenance reports that this particular Oil rig in the transaction, is old and overused and requires a major overhaul of its drills and parts."

Rex's eyes widened as realization dawned on him.

"Then they're trying to bait Roswell into going there to destroy it tonight, which wouldn't matter anyways since it's gonna expire soon."

"And when Roswell gets there, he's the one who is probably going to be destroyed," Noah finished.

* * *

The plan was in place.

Six and Captain Calan had a blueprint of the place and had carefully positioned the combat troops. They were pro tacticians, planning points where troops would enter to cut off the escape routes should Blaster Prince and Meta-Elemental try to run. They've ordered arrangements for every unit to be provided with the latest range of weapons that were most effective against those two fiend.

They oversaw preparations of evacuation jets and underwater rescue vessels to ferry the crew off the oilrig. They had factored in contingency plans, covering the sea and sky.

They were meticulous right down to detail, including getting the crew's overalls and fake ID badges for the infiltration team.

And they have mobilized the largest number of officers –over four hundred of them –since the mega battle with Gravity-Meta slightly over three years ago.

So why was it that things seemed to be going awry?

The towering monster of fire at the south block was blindingly bright in the dark, Persian-blue sky. Shouts pierced the night as crew members dangled precariously from splits in the metal scissor structure. Providence troops were scrambling to rescue those stranded crew, all the while with Meta-Elemental showering stakes of fire and ice all over the platform. Others were trying distract the Meta EVO so Rex could take him down.

Their ionized chargers were fairly apt at neutralizing the elements shot by the Meta EVO. When they fired at his fiery assault, the discharges would cause a mini combustion on contact with fire and extinguish it in a fraction of a second. When fired at ice, the heat melts it.

But not everyone had a hundred hit rate, especially when Meta-Elemental was zipping around in a chaotic manner, embroiled in a fierce battle with Rex. It was made tougher with Blaster Prince unleashing his sound blasts all over.

Blaster Prince had suddenly upped his game. His blasters released high-pitched shrills that pierced the eardrums, sending a ringing in the ears and causing some of the troops to drop to their knees and cry out in agony. Others were momentarily disorientated.

The worst part was that Blaster Prince's improved sound waves zipped through the air faster than before and cut like a knife, hence causing most of the destruction on the steel structures. His powers forced most of the squadrons to scatter, breaking their formation as they struggled to keep out of the deadly, cutting force.

Bobo seemed to fare better among the rest of the troops – he had lousy aim, but his monkey DNA coupled with the active nanites, which Rex subconsciously never cured, made him more dexterous and nimble. Then Bobo decided to put his talents to better use, jumping and climbing up the scissor structure to save those crew who were going to fall.

Jet fighter strikes were also called off, since there were still too many crew members left on the oilrig. Plus, Blaster Prince had already knocked down four –his sound wave blasts sped faster than the jet fighters could dodge.

Hence, Rex mostly ended up without support watching his back, and being caught in attacks by two super-powered figures was starting to take a toll on him. If it were not for the dependable and capable Six fighting alongside him with his near inhuman fighting prowess, Rex was sure he would have been done for.

Suddenly, an earth-shattering explosion on the west side sent everyone tumbling over, and before anyone could get up, the platform creaked and groaned ominously as it started dipping on one side, adding to the chaos.

So those were basically it –the bombs and an improved Blaster Prince –Providence didn't factor these two in, hence, resulting in the foreboding situation they were in.

"Six to Demolitions team, come in!" Six all but shouted into the communicator, showing his urgency, as it was rare for him to lose his cool and shout, "Another bomb has gone off. What is going on?"

"Apologies, Sir, Tango-2 had to withdraw because the timer suddenly sped up. We've reported this already but I think the signal was jammed. We couldn't get through to you."

The line was static, probably because of the interference from Blaster Prince's sound waves. At least it didn't completely damage their communicators, because the weapons division upgraded the ear pieces, reinforcing them with a much tougher alloy.

"Noted. But get the other bombs dismantled fast before the situation gets worst."

As soon as Six said that, platform cracked and half of it started careening sharply, tilting rapidly at an increasingly steep angle.

"This is bad, this is bad, this is bad," Rex chanted in alarming dread, watching some of the troops and crew sliding helplessly across the platform.

He quickly abandoned his duel with Blaster Prince and the Meta-Elemental and dived towards the bottom edge to catch them with his giant nanite hands. Though he had spikes firmly planted onto the platform so that he wouldn't fall, the weird angle and stance strained his back muscles as he tried to keep balance.

Good thing the platform suddenly halted, the fall stopped by lower support foundations.

Six took five giant leaps towards another crew who'd lost his grip on a pillar and caught his hand while he leaned onto a parallel beam for support.

Blaster Prince started aiming his sound machine after him, but Meta-Elemental butted in, hurling a fireball at him.

"We should just let the two of them fight it out till they fall," Rex suggested dryly.

It had been trying and chaotic as the four of them fought, with Six and Rex burdened with the extra responsibility to shield their troop members in the crossfire.

Six paused a moment to consider, then seconded it, "Yes, you're probably right. It'd be easier to take them down when they're exhausted. Let's evacuate the rest of the people first."

"Right."

Then Rex heard a shout from below and saw Noah waving at him from a rescue vessel floating on the ocean surface.

Rex grinned at his friend and dropped fifty feet towards the water, bringing along eight guys with him. Rex changed his feet into streamlined surf boards just before he hit the water so that he wouldn't sink.

"Noah, you're right on time."

"Was I ever late?" Noah gave a candid smile then helped the people to board the small underwater carrier.

Rex was proud that his best friend volunteered to help. Actually, Six and the others flat out refused, since Noah was never really an official Providence soldier so he had never been properly trained. But Noah managed to sneak on board one of the rescue jets, and did his part to help evacuate the crew to safety.

"Listen, I know it's war up there, but the situation with the bombs are worse. I got close enough to one of the demolitions team working on the bomb attached to the east pillar. They were saying that the bombs were impossible to disarm. The outer casing couldn't be cut opened or detached from the pillar. The good news is, the bombs are supposed to be set off by a frequency controller and they've managed to jam the signal to stop the explosions."

"But already two out of the eight bombs have gone off."

"Because it is also heat sensitive. The fire had climbed down the lower foundations and got too close, triggering a timer to countdown within a minute. It was too short for the team to do anything about it, but at least they learnt that much."

Rex frowned in worry.

"Could there be a kill switch from that same controller? Have the Gamma team found Donny? Or Stone?"

Noah looked surprised.

"You didn't receive the message?"

"Probably not," Rex said dryly, "I think Blaster Prince's waves are jamming our radio receivers as we fight."

"Damn, no wonder you know shit about the bombs too. You gotta tell Six," Noah ran his hand through his hair, "Listen, Donny and Stone weren't even in hiding. They're now held in Providence custody. Problem is, they're feigning ignorance."

"Then we don't have any more time to waste. I'll see if there's nothing I can't slice through with my big fat sword," Rex said through clenched teeth.

Rex zipped over to the nearest team parked against the pillar on their speedboats.

"Alright guys, make way for I'm cutting in," Rex announced as he transformed one arm into a shining, giant sword.

He angled his sword, attempting to slice the attachments off. In a giant swing, the force and the sharp edge of his blade cut in two inches deep before it got stuck. Then Rex felt the similar movements and electro transmission of instructions between live nanites, swarming against the sides of his blades.

Rex became alarmed and was stunned for a moment, confused by the odd touch. It was nothing like he'd ever come across before –not like the rampant nanites of an EVO, nor Van Kleiss'. They had an oddly different coding that felt almost alien to him.

"Rex? Something wrong?" A member of the demolition team asked.

Rex gritted his teeth.

"No."

Then he attempted to deactivate those alien nanites.

 _Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong!_

Rex could feel his mind in despair as he tried again. Something was definitely not right. They were nanites but their make was so different that Rex couldn't manipulate it.

Minutes must have passed. Tango-4 were getting worried, murmuring amongst themselves.

"I can't do it."

"Excuse me?"

Rex squeezed his eyes shut before repeating.

"The bomb is full of active nanites. But I can't deactivate them. I have to slice off the whole pillar and get it to a faraway place, safe from everyone else."

"What?" One of the agents balked, "But that's impossible! There are six pillars with the bombs and if you cut them off, the whole platform is going to crash for sure."

"Yea, and it'd hit the drill and it might cause the whole oil reserve to blow up from the impact," another agent argued.

"But we don't have any other choice, do we?" Rex snapped in frustration.

Then he radioed for Six, putting him on speakers.

"Rex to Six, come in. Where are you?"

"With Noah, atop the rescue vessel. Helping the civilians get in."

"Good, I think you need to order everyone to fall back," Rex said, then gave his doomsday brief about the bombs and his insane plan.

"And what if our submarines can't hold the weight of the platform when it falls? It's fifty lives on deck, sinking into the depths of the sea," Six replied skeptically when Rex was done.

"Actually, I think there is a better alternative," Holiday's voice came over the line.

She was charged with keeping watch from the command center, keeping track of the rescue vessels and supervising the evacuation efforts. It gave Rex extra security somehow, since she had the brains and was an excellent strategist. Since the command center was linked to the satellite and various high tech tracking systems, it was the perfect position for Holiday to take.

"Since the bombs could be set off by frequency, it could be possible to completely dismantle them via the same method."

"Yes, that makes sense," Six commented.

"Great, you're a genius doc!" Rex exclaimed, "Just one thing, how are we going to do that?"

"With a tuning fork," an agent said, holding up the apparatus.

The next few minutes was a sweaty, lip-biting wait as Rex nervously looked over Tango-4. They were talking with the other Tango teams as they worked furiously, dismantling odd bits and pieces from their other equipment and reassembling them into a new tool.

The sounds of booms and crashes and high-pitched waves continued high up above them, adding to the frenzy. Rex prayed that both Blaster Prince and Meta-Elemental would be too busy with each other to notice what the demolition team were doing.

"Ahh, so there you are, I've been looking for you."

Rex froze, dreading to hear the voice of Blaster Prince.

"Funny, I thought you were having too much fun with Meta-Elemental to be bothered with me."

"Oh I was, until your Providence friend helped me take him off my back."

"Rex? Calan here, do you read me? I have urgent news for you."

"Kinda busy here, Captain. Can it wait?" Rex tried to keep his voice level whilst he zipped off with Blaster Prince hot on his trail.

This time, the other party had his own jet thrusters at his back, allowing him freedom of movement in the air.

"I've flown back and managed to hit Meta-Elemental with a missile packed with ionized charges. It has temporarily knocked him out."

"Wow, thanks. That's awesome, Cap!"

"But Blaster Prince dodged the missile and he has gone down the side of the rig. He's probably going to try to stop the Tango teams from disarming the bomb. I'm low on fuel so I gotta land. But I'm going to reload a fresh missile into my hand carry launcher so if you can distract him and keep him busy, I can shoot him from the back."

Rex gave a strangled scream in reply as what felt like a dozen knives cut into his back. He lost his balance and dived downwards.

"Rex! You alright?"

Rex shook his dizzy head and was about to pull up his hover board when he changed his mind.

"Cap, come over to the North side, quickly! I'll be distracting him from the water."

"Got it."

Then he made a breathing apparatus for breathing underwater and plunged into the freezing ocean.

Rex's googles automatically adjusted settings to give him maximum visual under the dark surface. He made mini turbines at his feet so he could propel himself in the water and wouldn't sink. Catching the sight of Blaster Prince hovering around above, Rex fired a barrage of laser beams from his barrel gun.

Blaster Prince got hit by several shots and got knocked backwards, nearly falling into the water when he recovered last minute. Gliding over the surface, he sent his sound waves ricocheting the water that hit Rex in a mega tidal wave.

Rex nearly couldn't breathe as the impact hit him hard and swept him away.

He cursed inwardly at his stupidity –sound travelled faster in water and the sound blasts emitted from Blaster Prince would have enough energy to traverse from air to water.

When he found his breath, he called for Calan, words coming out in a gurgle.

"Captain, you there?"

 _-Bzzt-_

Rex cried out in frustration, remembering that he was underwater so radio transmission would be distorted.

He kicked his propellers into high gear, zooming through the water over a few hundred yards back to the rig. He hoped that Calan had managed to get his shot. Unfortunately, in the distance, he could vaguely make out Blaster Prince hovering close to the surface, arms firing at the lower foundations of the rig in a steady curve.

Rex burst out from the water and punched him from underneath sending him ricocheting into the sky. Rex was about to give chase when he heard Noah call him.

"Noah? How the freak did you get there?"

Rex balled his eyes on seeing his friend on the steel structures of the lower foundations, bracing a pillar for support. Noah had one sleeve tattered and was bleeding. Rex bit his tongue to keep from hurling in anger –Blaster Prince had been shooting at Noah, and had hurt him!

"Calan got knocked out, I think. He dropped his launcher, so I climbed up to pick it up," Noah explained while panting.

Then Rex saw the big weapon nearly as long as Noah's legs, leaning on the pillar. He moved toward Noah to get the weapon, but sensing the thrum of vibrations in the air, he sprung backwards to dodge another sound blast.

Mindful that he was too close to Noah, Rex kicked off again, soaring over the water in meandering lines to avoid Blaster Prince's killer waves.

Then Rex heard the sound of the launcher going off, and the sweet cry of Blaster Prince as he got hit by the charged ion missile. Rex whirled around in time to see the weapons on Blaster Prince sizzle and crackle.

"No, no, not again! My beautiful suit!" Blaster Prince cried out in frustration, spinning around manically in the air, dropping in jarred motions as his thrusters became damaged as well.

"You!" Blaster Prince spun to a stop in Noah's direction, pointing a menacing finger at him, "You will pay for ruining my whole system!"

Then his thrusters died and he fell into the water. Rex started to dive in after him when the eerie creaking and groaning sound returned, making his skin crawl.

"Oh damn," Rex cursed aloud at the sight of the oilrig veering off sideways in slow succession.

"Rex, where are you? We need you here, pronto. We've got a support crane over, E.T.A in another fifteen minutes. In the meantime, we need you to brace the rig to stop it from falling over."

"Got it, let me get Blaster Prince first, Noah's got him with the missile and he's in the water-"

The platform veered sideways further, the whole structure shaking dangerously.

"-Or not."

"Leave him to us, Rex," a Providence Officer radioed as a team of them on speed boats zipped towards him.

Rex nodded in thanks and headed back.

"I'm coming over, Six. Just one thing, is there any word on those bombs yet?"

* * *

After nearly twenty minutes of some seriously insane, weightlifting, Rex plunked flat on the slanted platform, unable to move. He couldn't even feel his arms, nor the cuts at his back as they were already numb. He felt rather dizzy from the ordeal he just went through, plus, he had lost quite a bit of blood when he fell into the sea after being hit by Blaster Prince.

But hey, good news was, he held on until the support crane arrived to hold the platform steady. The bombs were shut down and Tango team discovered they could then cut away the gadget from the pillars with little effort.

Meta-Elemental was finally locked up in a Nanite Destabilizer –a metal box specially designed to nullify his powers.

So once again, the day was saved.

"Rex, quit lying around. Get on move on back to HQ so you can get a proper rest."

Rex smiled at Six, who was still seemed full of energy, busying himself with arranging transport and talking to some operative guys on tearing down the rig part by part.

"Awww, thanks for caring. Just let me rest here for another five minutes. Or better yet, think you can send a stretcher over to ferry me to the jet?"

"Everyone's busy, I think," Noah laughed, standing over Rex with his hands planted on his hips.

Rex bit his lips on seeing the bandages around Noah's arm. He hated this, hated seeing anyone get hurt, especially Noah, who didn't need to be a part of this.

Then Noah bent over, good arm outstretched to pull Rex up, but Rex yanked Noah down instead.

Noah yelled as he fell over, then gave Rex an annoyed stare.

"Just relax here, for a while. Let's watch the stars."

Noah gave him a pointed look, but shifted himself to lay down beside him.

"This is lame, Rex, I only see smoke and ashes. No stars."

"My point exactly," Rex couldn't keep from sounding sad.

He was tired. Exhausted even. The chaos, the destruction, the hurt and pain –why does it never end?

"Rex," Noah sat up and stared at him with a concerned expression, "This is about being upset over Donny J., right?"

Rex sighed and rubbed his face with his palms.

"Yea. I can't believe that he'd do this to his own father. Sure, Roswell's a manic, but he didn't need to throw everyone else into the fire as well. And to think that he'd lambasted Roswell for being a murdering psychopath."

"Yea well," Noah shrugged, "You know what they say, 'like father, like-'"

"Guys look out!"

Rex's instinct took over in a flash, beaming out his force shield over him and Noah before he even saw what was coming.

A missile blew up harmlessly on Rex's defense, but the impact knocked them both backwards.

Calan was shooting over their heads the next instant while the attacker in a dark bodysuit ran alongside the edge before firing another missile.

Rex jumped and blocked the missile midflight and got blown across the platform by the explosive impact.

"That's Providence weapon –he must have hijacked from our men," Calan commented whilst he continued shooting. But his aim was unusually off and Rex then realized that Calan must have injured his arm in the fight with Blaster Prince.

"Well I wanna know who this duce bag is," Rex said through gritted teeth, getting angrier every second.

Why couldn't these maniacs stop their destructive rampage?

Six joined them, speeding towards the attacker's back with his flying kick. But the guy promptly spun and caught Six's foot, sending him flying and crashing into Calan.

Rex cursed and flung his whip towards him, only to find the guy bounding like an expert acrobat, leaping out of his grasps.

The masked attacker chortled loudly and Rex immediately knew who he was.

"Blaster Prince, I thought you'd taken a dive. Did you lose your expensive gear in the water?"

"No thanks to you!" the other barked then relaxed his tone again, "But lucky for me, without my suit weighing me down or interfering with my hearing, I'm still a living weapon."

He demonstrated it well by dodging every attack from Rex, Six and Calan. He was quick enough to even land a few punches.

"C'mon Rex, you're being clumsy. What are you doing?" Six scolded pointedly.

Rex cursed at his predicament, knowing that Six was right. Pounding and kicking EVOs, evil robots, machines and armored guys with his giant constructs and shooting energy beams, was one thing. But hitting and shooting a non-armored guy was another –Rex wasn't sure he could land a strike without killing the guy.

Then Calan managed to shoot Blaster Prince's arm so Six immediately jumped on him and twisted his wounded arm back, wrenching a scream from him. Calan ran over to help six hold the guy on the ground and cuff the guy's arms.

Blaster Prince's mangled cries slowly turned into laughs, sending alarm bells firing off in Rex's head. As Rex alerted Calan and Six that something was wrong, Noah raced over, reached for something within Six's blazer and ran off a few steps before flinging it away, right before it exploded.

Everyone got knocked over from the impact that reverberated through the platform. A blinding light was also released in the blast, causing temporary disorientation.

With stars spotting Rex's teary vision, he vaguely made out Blaster Prince kicking Six and Calan off him, before jumping off the side of the rig. Six quickly recovered and gave chase, unaffected by the blinding light since he had his sunglasses.

Rex was seized with something that was more important and couldn't give a damn about Blaster Prince anymore. He bounded over to Noah, who laid motionless.

"Noah! Noah!" Rex screamed frantically, his gut twisting in fear, "Speak to me, man!"

He held Noah in his arms, shaking him until Noah cracked his eyes open and replied exhaustedly, "Ouch, not so hard."

Rex sighed in relief and gave an apologetic smile.

"Man, why do you keep joining me in these life threatening situations? Your summer holidays are going to be threatened if you're bedridden, you know? It starts next week, doesn't it?"

Noah laughed.

"Are you kiddin' me? This is the best way to kick-start my hols. I'll have new stories to boast when I get back to school."

"Not to forget, to the Providence recruits who hasn't shown the same promise you do," Captain Calan suddenly added from behind Rex.

He braced his injured arm and gave Noah an approving nod.

"I saw you today kid, you did a good job. If you aren't bedridden, maybe you can come up Providence boot camp again. Get a little refresher course since it has been six years since you *first attended. Hutton will probably be glad to have you again."

Then he left to give orders to his troops, sending two squads to support Six in capturing Blaster Prince and the rest to continue clearing the mess and put out the dying flames.

Rex gwaffled, "Oh what a joker, that guy. As if we're going give up over fifty days of video games and hot, bikini babes, for torture."

"Hmm, actually, you know," Noah said slowly, "That doesn't sound like a bad idea."

Rex thought for a moment that Noah had knocked his screws loose and laughed. But as he looked into Noah's bright blue eyes, he thought he saw determined fires burning inside them, or could be the reflection from the surrounding flames.

"You aren't joking, are you?"

* * *

"Did you see?" a woman asked in a sullen tone, staring straight ahead into one of the ghostly windows that captured the incident that played out far away from where they were.

"Yes, yes, I see it, it's interesting. Those bombs are quite unusual," the man drawled slowly, from behind her, tone uncharacteristically upbeat. He hadn't sound happy in a long time.

"Yes, they seem to be giving Rex some trouble."

The deathly pale man grinned, the whites of his teeth sickeningly bright.

It made her sick. Nothing she ever showed pleased him, unless they showed promise of hurting her friend.

"I don't suppose you could bring to me –it's stuck to the pillars," he mused aloud and started chattering away in a fashion that she knew he wasn't talking to her or anyone else but himself.

It was disturbing, nearly as disturbing as the torments in her mind. However, she endured listening to him, because he was her master, and he could give her what she wanted.

He leaned forwards in his chair to get a closer look at the bomb through the floating window she'd pulled out for him.

"The Sound Blaster who put it there –I see he's managed to escape."

There was that tone that she recognized, of him wanting something badly, and knew she'd be sent to snatch her next target.

"Shall I bring him to you?" she asked in anticipation.

He let out a small laughter, surprising her.

"Silly girl, he's just fodder –unimportant. But he might lead us to the maker of those bombs. Now, that's important. Make sure you watch him."

"Certainly," the woman answered, "As I always do. I watch everything."

Author's Comments:

How was this chapter? I hope the action scenes weren't too confusing. XD

If you noticed, I've avoided using some of the pet names for his weapons, like B.F.S and Bad Axes. I know they are the official names in the guide, but it feels kinda odd to put it in writing.

I've added extra gadgets that Rex could create (like the underwater turbines and breathing gadget) –it makes sense that since he can control nanites, he would pick up new tricks over the years.

I'm planning more action sequences too and there might be other recurring villains, both old and new *hint*hint*, so stay tuned! ^_^

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*first attended :

In the 17th episode entitled, 'Basic', Noah and Rex went through Providence training for new recruits.


	5. Bittersweet

**Chapter Five: Bittersweet**

(Summer begins. Rex reunites with some old friends)

* * *

Noah proves he was serious about his decision when he signed up for Basic, again.

Which was why Rex was awake at the ungodly hour of three in the morning, which was *DI Hutton's idea of the start of the day.

Rex sat glumly by the bench in the locker room as Noah changed into Providence monochrome colored uniform. He'd been trying for the last unsuccessful hour to dissuade Noah from his six-weeks-holiday suicide.

Just last week, they saved hundreds of the crew at the oilrig, prevented the oil reserves from turning into a mega explosion and caught Meta-Elemental. Oh sure, that slippery Blaster Prince ended up getting away, but it couldn't ruin Rex's mood as he was really synced and looking forward to spending plenty of game time with Noah.

"I'm convinced the blast got you real bad. What about the two weeks theatre camp that you have every summer? Don't you get extra credits for it or something?"

Noah shrugged.

"I guess, but it wouldn't matter since I'm graduating this year."

Rex gave him a horrified look.

"That's it, I'm calling the doctor."

Noah laughed and dumped a towel at Rex's face.

"Go call Bobo, if you're lonely."

"But I'm already with him every day," Rex whined.

But Noah was already heartlessly out the door, leaving Rex to sulk the rest of the day.

* * *

Rex was disappointed –crushingly so. Summer was the one time in the whole year that they really got to spend ample time together.

Noah's college was much further than where he used to live and took Rex twice the time it used to take, on his hover bike. And for Noah to come over, he'd to take a five-hour train ride. Hence, they couldn't spend as much time as they did together.

Noah would come over to providence on some weekends and on evenings when Rex was free, he'd go over to Noah's dorms.

In the last three years of Noah's college life, they would split their summer, bunking with Rex at Providence headquarters, at Noah's room back in his parent's house and a few days at the resort at Cabo Luna.

It was their 'tradition'.

Then every few days when Rex gets a mission, Noah joins him as his gun-slinging sidekick. It was super cool.

After sighing for the umpteenth time that day, Bobo decidedly had enough.

He gave the depressed young man a good kick at his side, causing Rex to fall from his chair.

Rex yelped angrily, "Hey! What's the big idea?"

"You. Go take anti-depressants if you're too upset to play Monkey Kong versus Killer Whale with me."

Rex made a face as he pulled himself up.

"I wanted to play with Noah. He's fair game. You're undefeated," Rex admitted.

Bobo unceremoniously smacked the back of Rex's head.

"You ungrateful lout –this is all the thanks I get for babysitting you? And you haven't grown up one bit. Didn't I teach you to take what you want?"

* * *

Like Bobo suggested, since Rex couldn't stop Noah, he joined him instead.

So now they were running neck to neck along the outdoor track, leading the rest of the trainees by at least several yards.

Rex panted lightly, but forced himself to keep his breaths steady.

"Last lap!" Hutton's throaty bark came as they passed the 400 meter mark for the fourth time.

Rex could see Noah getting sluggish and he lagged behind a few feet.

Rex beamed, proud that he didn't have to use his nanite-enhanced abilities to beat Noah. Still, he had to admit Noah was pretty impressive too, compared to the others, and he reminded himself that Noah was a sporty guy.

Noah was the table tennis champion in city-state competitions from junior high to high school. And since his college didn't offer table tennis, he switched to basketball and wowed crowds with his mad skills.

But when they completed the long-distance race, Hutton wasn't impressed like Rex thought he would.

"Wipe the smug grin off your face, Rex. This should be an infant run for you since you're a senior agent. But I'm embarrassed to let these recruits see the worst one I have. Your speed is the lowest I've recorded among all my senior officers!" Hutton barked at Rex's face, showering saliva.

Rex grimaced inwardly and cleaned his face with his sleeve as soon as Hutton moved on the Noah.

"And you, blonde, it's good to see you back but if you're here just for another play date with Rex, then I suggest you head home. It's a wonder your stamina is so bad since you've had run ins with EVOs for numerous times. But I guess it's this way since you were only chasing after Rex's back."

Rex stuck a tongue at the demanding, bald instructor as he went down the line, demeaning the rest of the recruits for their even lousier timing.

"Seriously, I can't believe you came back here for his shouting," Rex said dryly.

When he didn't get a reply, he turned his head sideways at Noah then noticed that his cheeks were red.

 _Because of the run?_ Rex wondered.

But no, Rex had a feeling it wasn't. He'd seen his friend enough times to tell that Noah was embarrassed.

Noah folded one arm across, gripping his other elbow, head downcast like he was disappointed in himself too.

"Jeez, Noah," Rex whispered as he nudged Noah's arm, "Don't let Hutton get to you. The guy cannot be pleased, you know that."

Noah cast a sideways glance at him, brows narrowed.

"No Rex, Hutton is right. I have to step up."

* * *

Hell didn't came close to describing the rest of the day's training.

Hutton was tough on them.

They did obstacle courses and hand-to-hand combat training with nary a moments break in between.

Rex thought that Noah and him had fared well in both segments, besting all the others. But Hutton kept putting them down, warning Rex not to get ahead of himself. He reminded Rex it was natural since they had more experience.

By the time dinner started, Rex was about to call it quits. Not that he couldn't take the training –but it was hell to listen to Hutton's barking. Noah seemed oblivious to it, or had patience of a God to take it. As much as Rex thought Noah was shortchanging himself, he was secretly proud of Noah's tenacity.

Sure, Noah liked to compete senselessly and was a huge joker like him, but Noah had times like this when he was solely driven and serious. It kind of made Rex feel like pitching harder too.

Which was why Rex hadn't thrown in the towel in mid-morning the next day.

Rex panted hard, legs muscles screaming as he pushed them to their limit. He was sure he'd get a cramp later, but for now, he was focused on winning Noah.

The 100 meter race should be easy for Rex, but Noah made it look like child's play, steadily a few steps ahead.

Rex grimaced, annoyed but was not surprised.

Rex usually counted on his nanite-enhancements to boost his speed in his battles. But Noah had done it on leg power alone, so it was obvious that Noah would ace in sprinting.

That seemed to finally shut Hutton's mouth, as after the race, Hutton ranted on everyone except for Noah.

Rex grinned and gave Noah a thumbs up, who grinned back.

Then Hutton gave them a ten minutes break.

The training platoon immediately dropped to the hot, barren ground like they were dead.

"I so cannot feel my limbs," Rex lamented, "I'm going die if he keeps this up."

Noah smirked.

"Then give up."

"Like hell I would," Rex replied weakly and lightly punched his shoulder.

Then a ringtone sounded and startled Rex a bit as he wasn't expecting anyone to call. Aside from Noah, who frequently called him, only a handful of his old pals contacted him and it was few and in between.

He crawled languidly towards where he'd left his jacket and phone –he never liked going anywhere without them and he'd rather shoot himself in the head before he donned their uniform, so he'd been training in just his favorite tee and pants.

Rex was surprised to see it was Noah's house number.

"Mrs. Nixon, hi!" Rex gave a cheery greeting.

Out from the corner of his eyes, he thought he saw Noah flinch.

"How are you doing?"

They exchanged pleasantries while he returned to Noah's side. He assured her that he was doing well then laughed when she expressed her worry that Noah had abruptly informed her that he was suddenly going for Providence boot camp.

"Well, you know Noah –he's a spontaneous guy. But I'd say he's doing well, probably top of the class. Do you want to talk to him?"

Noah sat up, shook his head and waved his hands frantically, nearly panicking. Rex frowned at Noah's odd behavior. Noah wasn't a Mommy's boy, but they were definitely close –Noah could pretty much talk to his mom about everything. So it was strange that Noah wanted to avoid her call. Nonetheless, Rex decided to humor his friend.

"Uh, actually, Noah's not free right now, can I pass on a message?" Rex quickly changed the topic.

"Yes hon, please tell him to come home and stay over for the weekend sometime –and not just drop in for an hour of 'hello' and then run off. I know he's still mad with his father for chasing him out last winter, but it's been over nearly six months and he hasn't come home even once on the weekends."

"He was, what now?" Rex rose up, thoroughly shocked, "Why was he was chased out?"

Noah cleared his throat loudly.

Mrs. Nixon remained uncomfortably silent for a stretch.

"He didn't tell you?"

"No, apparently not," Rex gave Noah a pointed stare, "So can you please tell me what is going on?"

Mrs. Nixon sighed.

"I think it's best if he tells you himself. Just let him know that I called because he hasn't been answering his cell. And it'd be nice of him to visit sometime."

"Right, I'll do that," Rex assured her, "Bye Mrs. Nixon, take care."

When he hung up, Rex stared down at Noah with arms folded across his chest.

"How come I didn't hear anything about your dad chasing you out? Why were you chased out?"

Noah gave a huge sigh and averted his gaze.

"It was nothing, we just had a big quarrel."

"Big enough to be chased out? To not go back to visit?" Rex lamented dryly.

Noah and his family were one happy family unit –he couldn't imagine what kind of spat would happen that could cause such a drastic turn.

"C'mon, Noah," Rex softened his tone and plunked down beside him, wrapping an arm round his shoulder, "You can tell me."

"I don't really want to talk about it, Rex."

"Noah, I'm worried. Did something bad really happen?"

"Alright people, break's over. Get your asses into formation now!" Hutton's order came booming.

Rex felt sorry for the miserable look on Noah's face. But there was nothing he could do as training went on the rest of the day.

* * *

When training finally ended, Rex was at Noah's heel, pushing him for an answer.

"For the umpteen time, Rex," Noah sighed as he opened his locker to get a fresh change of clothes, "I'm not telling."

"And for the umpteen time, Noah," Rex laid a gentle hand on his shoulder and turned him around, "What the hell happened?"

The locker room was dotted with several people, some were the trainees and others having just finished their shift. Even though it was late, Providence had staff on four shifts round the clock, so there were always people around no matter the time.

"You're annoying, you know that?" Noah lightly pushed Rex's hand away and slammed his locker shut.

"I prefer to think that I'm persistent."

Noah entered one of the cubicles and slung his clothes and towel over the door. Rex put his elbow and foot in between, preventing Noah from closing it.

A few guys gave Rex a strange look, but he ignored them.

"I'm gonna take a shower. Do you mind?"

"I'm not going to let you. Until you spill."

Noah shot icy beams at him.

"Fine, whatever."

Noah spun around and started stripping.

Noah sported a light tan, but his back remained pretty pale, making his scars look more prominent. Rex had seen him shirtless countless of times –in the room on hot days or by the sea or the pool. So he knew every single scar on Noah's back, and how and when he'd got them –from battles with EVOs and other destructive maniacs.

Noah was one tough guy and always had Rex's back, jumping in to help him even if it meant getting himself hurt. So it bothered Rex, a lot, that here Noah was with a problem and Rex couldn't do anything to help.

Rex recognized the new scars on Noah's back –from the big mission at the oilrig last week. He bit his tongue, hating to see it and fought the urge to touch it, as if he could heal it with his nanites. Rex's nanites were bonded to his cellular structure, so they gave him regenerative abilities. But of course, it wouldn't work on Noah.

Rex kept staring at his back, not realizing that Noah had pulled his pants down. Then he noticed Noah's snow-white mounds and nearly choked on his own saliva.

Rex lost his nerve and quickly turned away, embarrassed. It was weird to see his friend butt-naked. And he hadn't seen Noah naked butt before. But then again, why should he turn away? Noah didn't seem to care.

When Noah came out, dressed in his home tee and slacks, he gave Rex an annoyed look.

"You're still here?"

"Yup, because you still hadn't said anything."

"Go take a bath, Rex, you stink, it's already past midnight, and we gotta get up early again tomorrow."

Rex didn't give up. He kept hounding Noah all the way back to the trainee bunker.

Before Noah entered, he looked both ways of the corridor then suddenly pulled Rex down for a kiss.

An electric jolt ran through them both, like they'd touched a switch that short-circuited.

Rex's mind went blank, overwhelmed by the zillion buzzing inside him that sent a strange tingle running all the way to his toes.

Noah seemed equally shocked, slack against the door.

"What was that?" Rex said breathlessly.

"I don't know," Noah's voice was shaky, "Maybe because I'm still wet and you're suddenly super-charged or something."

Then he shook his head and straightened himself.

"Anyway, quit bothering me, or I'll kiss you again."

* * *

"C'mon Noah, you sure you don't wanna come with? We haven't seen the gang in a long time," Rex tried persuading Noah.

*Tuck suddenly gave him a call during lunch, inviting him over to Hong Kong. It was kind of last minute, but his old friends from Hong Kong were having a reunion party that night.

Rex was super synched and bounded off to ask Noah to join him.

He'd actually ditched training that morning because he felt too awkward around Noah. Not like he'd been counting, but it was their third kiss yesterday. And somewhere along Rex's mind, he was pretty sure they were crossing some line.

But he got over that in an instant at the prospect of him and Noah, chilling with his old buddies. It was cool that Noah could gel well with the others, and they had a blast two winters back when they visited.

"Hmm, let's see, having a good time the rest of the day then coming back to get mega thrashed by Hutton –it sounds like a great plan, Rex," Noah said sarcastically.

"Well, look at the big picture, Noah, it's a whole evening of laughs and painting the town red! It's totally worth the pain after that."

Noah gave a dry laugh.

"I'll pass."

"You're no fun –if you ask me, going into Basic again is making you too serious."

"Yes, I am serious about completing this boot camp."

"Oh c'mon, pretty please," Rex made puppy eyes, interlocked his fingers together and held a begging fists in front of Noah.

Noah laughed, head shaking.

"Dude, seriously, try your puppy eyes at someone else."

Rex pouted and folded his arms.

"You know, I could just hijack you and take you with me."

"Sure you can," Noah said in an exaggerated drawl and raised a haughty brow, "If you want me to kiss you again."

Rex jolted on reflex, remembering the weird static that ran through his body.

Noah chortled at Rex's reaction, slapping his thigh, then continued, "Just go on without me. Trust me, you'll have so much fun that you won't even miss me."

* * *

Rex flew all day, adding four boosters to his usual jet pack to blast his speed, just so that he could make it.

When he landed at the address that Tuck had given him, he did a double take, wondering if he'd been to the wrong place.

The two-storey restaurant with a veranda on the upper floor, looked pretty posh, with ancient Chinese tiled roof and dragon reliefs climbing up the mahogany pillars. Maroon carpet let the way indoors, with the hostess at the door dressed in an elaborate brocade cheongsam.

Rex couldn't help feeling that he was underdressed. Or make that, severely underdressed.

The other restaurant guest were in semi-formal wear and Rex considered ditching the place for a moment.

"Rex!"

Rex turned at the mention of his name and was surprised to see Tuck and Walter dressed in black tie with a boutonnière.

"Man, I'm so glad you could make it! We were waiting for you." Walter gave Rex a firm hug.

Rex laughed.

"Yea, I missed you guys too," Rex hugged them back, then continued, arching a brow, "So Tuck, Skwydd –or should I say, Walter –looking pretty snazzy, huh? What's the occasion?"

Walter laughed, combing his dark brown hair back.

"You're funny, Rex. C'mon up, we've booked a room upstairs," Walter said as he put a palm on his shoulder.

As they climbed halfway up the stairs, Circe suddenly appeared in view, dressed in a simple, ivory dress with her hair in an up do.

Rex promptly froze at the stunning sight.

"Ci-Circe!" Rex stammered, "What a surprise!"

He really was –he really didn't know where Circe went after they broke up. On hindsight, he should have guessed that Tuck would include Circe in their reunion too. She had stayed with them for months back in those days while they were all EVOS. She used to follow Van Kleiss and the Pack at first, but finally she left for good, and *Rex suggested that she find Tuck and the gang –told her that they'd give her a place to stay. And they got on famously well after that.

"Rex," Circe wore an unreadable expression, "I didn't really think that you would…nevermind, I'm glad you could make it."

Rex flinched inwardly at her strained face while she said that.

"Excuse me, I'm going to the washroom," she added and hurried down the stairs.

Rex felt wooden the rest of the way up –he seemed to have difficulty coordinating his legs and he tripped, twice.

He cursed himself for being so clumsy and forced himself to calm down. He mentally told himself that he was there for a good time with his pals –not trip over his ex.

They brought him to a spacious room hung with a chandelier, luxurious carpeting on the floor and coverlets on the chairs, and had beaded curtains decorating the archway to the veranda.

Cricket ran and gave him a hug before he was done admiring the room.

She was dressed up nicely too in a tube dress and Rex expressed his surprise at seeing her glamorous get up.

At that, she flickered a gaze to Tuck and frowned for an instant, before laughing it off and dragging him to a seat.

Walter and Tuck settled in too and the four of them fell into a comfortable chatter, catching up on one another. Mostly, they got Rex to fill them in on his battles and they laughed at parts where he exaggerated.

After a while, Walter stood up.

"Sorry, Circe seems to be taking a while. Let me go check up on her then we can start the course."

"Course?" Rex exclaimed, "As in, a fine-dining eight course meal?"

Walter laughed at Rex's happy face.

"Yes, I ordered the best."

Then the doors shut behind Walter.

Rex was impressed, but he couldn't help getting the feeling that he was missing something.

He leaned forwards in his chair and looked between Tuck and Cricket.

"Wow, it's nice that you guys are going all out for our reunion party, but something else is going on, isn't it?"

Tuck gave a nervous laugh.

"Nothing, we just wanted to have a nice evening, that's all."

Cricket cleared her throat loudly just as Tuck let out a loud 'ouch'.

"Sorry, Rex, would you mind, excusing us a moment?" Cricket said through a very, strained smile as she yanked Tuck out of his seat and dragged him out.

Right before the door closed behind them, Rex could hear Tuck asking why she had stepped on his foot. Rex crept up to the door and pushed it ajar so he could hear them.

"This is a disaster, Tuck! What were you thinking? You were supposed to tell him. Why didn't you tell Rex before asking him to come here?"

Rex couldn't take anymore of this weirdness.

He pushed open the door and asked, "Didn't tell me what?"

They both flinched at being caught. Then Cricket elbowed Tuck.

"Go on, tell him!"

Tuck cleared his throat and scratched his head nervously.

"Well, I wanted to tell you, but I kinda lost the nerve. The thing is –"

"I'm marrying Circe," Walter interrupted as he joined in.

Rex dropped his jaws in shock. He stared at Walter, then at his other two friends, then back at Walter again.

Then Rex cursed loudly, "God, I'm so stupid!"

He hung his head and held it with his hands.

The excuse for a reunion, the nice restaurant, the fancy get up –this was their wedding dinner.

"I'm sorry, I should have told you earlier, myself. But I just, didn't know what to say-"

"Of course you didn't," Rex spat, "Not as if you could phone me to tell me that you were dating my ex behind my back."

"Rex-"

"Stop, just stop," Rex held his palms out before him, "Seriously, not another word."

Then Rex promptly turned on his heel and stalked down the stairs, ignoring Cricket who called after him.

 _How dare they invite me to their wedding?_ Rex seethed.

For goodness sake, Circe was his ex, and Skwydd his close buddy!

His insides were totally messed up. Even so, Rex being Rex, he did feel that perhaps his previous words were too venomous for their big day.

So he stopped for just the briefest moments at the door and said, "Look, I'm happy that you've found each other. Really, I do. I'm angry but I still wish you happiness."

Then he brought out his turbine wings and was going to jet off, until Circe stepped into his view.

"Rex, please, can we talk?"

* * *

Rex was flying blind.

Or it felt like it. He wasn't really focusing on the direction he was going.

It was cold to fly at night, colder still because there was a heavy downpour midway and Rex's jacket wasn't really thick enough to protect from the cold. But it wouldn't have mattered anyway since he was already numb. He was surprised he even made it back to Providence in one piece.

His clothes, his hair were dripping wet. It weighed down on him, making it hard to walk. Some of the agents on night watch asked if he was okay. Rex ignored them, too tired to reply.

He dragged his foot all the way back to his room, head downcast, so he didn't notice Noah in his way.

"Rex, you're drenched! You should have taken shelter from the rain," Noah chided as he grabbed his shoulders.

Rex was too tired to come up with his usual snappy comebacks.

He pushed Noah's hands off and continued his way.

"Oh no –not to your room. You need a hot shower."

"Doesn't matter, not like I can get a cold," Rex replied, though he let Noah drag him down the other corridor into one of the spare rooms.

"At least dry off, then we'll talk," Noah said firmly then handed him a towel.

Rex scrunched his face at the monochrome room as he slung the towel over his shoulders.

"I prefer my room, my bed."

"It's late. Bobo's asleep," Noah said as he gently pushed Rex to sit at the couch.

"Then how come you're not asleep? Don't you have training early in the morning?"

"How do you expect me to sleep when you called me to say Circe's married and pregnant, then promptly cut off the line?" Noah replied in exasperation, "If I didn't sneak into Holiday's lab to check that your biometrics were still kicking, I would have thought you crashed someplace and died."

"Jeez, you were worried for me, thanks," Rex gave a weak laugh and slumped against the backrest.

He gave a heavy sigh. He felt so tired and his head hurt from being soaked in the rain.

"C'mon Rex, what happened? Tell me," Noah ordered, standing before him with his hands on his hips.

Rex started laughing again, shoulders shaking. Or was he crying?

"It's funny, I kept thinking how she'd said that she loved me too much to remain with me. And I gotta admit, that she's right. But it's only been a year, Noah, just one freaking year since she dumped me then she goes off sleeping with someone else. And it's with my pal, Skwydd, of all the freaking people!"

Rex started choking on his words, anger rising anew. Not that he couldn't let her go, but at least the pain wouldn't have been as much as if she married some guy he didn't know.

But Skwydd was his best pal alongside Cricket and Tuck while he was in Hong Kong. They all knew that Circe and Rex dated. But none of the them had the courtesy to at least inform him when Circe got together with Skwydd.

He couldn't help but feel so betrayed.

"I thought I was important, Noah."

 _To them, to her._

"But none of them bothered to tell me about the two of them."

"But you are Rex, don't you see? That's the reason why they invited you to their wedding dinner. It was important to them that their best pal was there to witness it."

"It's cruel."

Noah sighed and curled his arm around Rex's shoulders, pulling his head to rest against his chest.

"Part of life, Rex, Live, love, hurt. The important thing now is for you to move on. Find someone new."

"How? No one is gonna love-" Rex choked on the words and sniffled more, "-me like her."

"No, that's wrong, Rex," Noah cupped his face and tilted it to face his, "She doesn't love you enough. Otherwise, she'd accept you for who you are, accept your job and stay with you. Fight alongside you even."

Rex gave a defeated sigh.

"That's the thing, Noah, who will? This isn't exactly someone's idea of a happy, married life. You know, Circe said she wanted to have kids and raise them in a safe and normal environment, with their dad around. But she couldn't do that with me. She said I couldn't give her that, so she left," Rex burst aloud, voice cracking.

His chest heaved in and out deeply, hurting from the memory. Worse, it was so frustrating to admit that Circe was right. Rex wouldn't be able to have a normal relationship with her, or anyone for that matter.

"Well," Noah said softly, "I would."

And before Rex could properly register what Noah had said, he felt warm lips over his own frozen ones. They were dry and a little chapped against Rex's wet lips, but Rex thought he tasted sweet.

"Noah," Rex rasped out when Noah pulled away, feeling confused why he did that.

As if reading his thoughts, Noah quickly said, "Sorry, I meant that I would have done that for someone I truly loved."

Rex choked out a laugh, suddenly finding it comical to hear such devoted speech from the perpetual flirt.

"What? I'm serious! I really would do anything."

"Oh, sure you would," Rex remembered how the younger Noah was when he was smitten with Claire.

Noah had been hopelessly infatuated with her from junior high all the way through high school. And well, he was steadfast alright, chasing her till he got her and dating her till his finished his first year at college.

"Just like how you went through those lengths to get Claire."

 _Shit._

Rex bit his tongue.

"Uh, I mean, sorry, slip of the tongue," Rex quickly apologized and mentally kicked himself for thoughtlessly bringing up Noah's past relationship. It was enough having one guy's wounds opened.

Rex recalled how after Noah and Claire broke up, Noah suddenly turned a one-eighty, flirting with almost anyone with two legs in a skirt. It almost seemed like Noah was constantly looking for a distraction to fill the hole in his heart.

"That's okay, doesn't bother me anymore –Claire was ancient history," Noah shrugged, dropping his hands to Rex's shoulders, "Come to think of it, I don't think I was really that deep into her anyway. Maybe it was just puppy love. Anyway, bottom line is, you just haven't found the one who is your soul mate yet."

Rex scoffed.

"Then she must be someone who's abnormal."

"No sweat, just take a look at Six and holiday –they're two perfectly abnormal people who have been in love with one another."

Rex laughed, hard, which made him nearly choke since his nose was entirely blocked from crying so he'd to breathe through his mouth, and it was hard to breathe and laugh at the same time.

When he recovered, he leaned forwards onto Noah's chest, suddenly feeling like his head was too heavy. He knew he shouldn't be hogging Noah –should let him get his sleep soon. But Rex selfishly didn't want Noah to go because he ached for the comfort.

Noah was warm and hot against his cold body, and it felt comfortable and soothing, especially when Noah started rubbing his shoulders over the towel.

"Noah," Rex croaked after a long while, "Thanks for being here."

Noah laughed softly.

"I will always be here, Rex."

* * *

 **Author's comments:**

Sorry, Circe X Rex lovers! This is a Rex X Noah coupling, so I just HAD to break them up. But believe me, I really liked the two of them together too. X3

Also, if anyone finds it odd that Circe has got together with Skywdd, well, may I remind you, that Skywdd was shown to have a crush on her on "Hard Target."

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Tuck, Cricket and Skywdd :

They appeared a few times over the series. They were Rex's EVO friends from Hong Kong. They're a fun bunch, and cute. I really loved their comradely with Rex, so I've kept it going on. I might even consider featuring them more in later chapters…heehee.. but well, it depends on how the story flows, and if I have any inspiration. XD

*DI Hutton:

In the 17th episode entitled, 'Basic', Noah and Rex went through Providence training for new recruits. Hutton was the training instructor.

*Rex suggested that she find Tuck and the gang :

In the 25th episode, "Alliance," Circe finally decided to quit the Pack. In the last scene, Rex suggested that she could bunk in with his EVO friends from Hong Kong.

Then in "Hard Target", Circe was shown to hit it off with Rex's Hong Kong pals. They seemed to form a tight knit friendship, so I thought to continue from there.


	6. Familiar Faces

**Chapter Six: Familiar Faces**

(Rex wakes up to a new mission that has him return to an unexpected situation)

* * *

When Rex woke, he panicked at first, because something live and warm was breathing beneath him.

Then when he burst his eyes open, he relaxed on seeing Noah's face. Somehow, they had fallen asleep together, squashed on the same coach.

He gingerly got up, careful not to wake his friend, until he glanced at his watch and realized in horror that Noah should have been up four hours ago.

"Noah!" Rex yelled and rocked him, "Get up, you're late!"

Noah made some inaudible noise and rolled over his side.

"C'mon, get up! You're late for training!" Rex tried again, yelling in his ear.

Noah remained dead like a log.

"Get up! Or Hutton is gonna get your ass!"

Noah shot up like lightning and banged heads with Rex, causing him to stumble back.

"Oww!" Rex rubbed his head.

Noah checked his watch, and paled.

"Damn it! I'm so screwed!" he cursed loudly, jumped from the couch as if the head bang didn't hurt him at all and was out the room in a flash.

Rex hurried after Noah, not wanting him to bear the brunt of Hutton's fury alone, though he was sure it wouldn't have mattered even if he never showed up, since he never officially signed up for Basic anyway.

Rex was still a little light-headed from the head bang, and his engine still hadn't quite woken up yet, so he lagged far behind Noah.

Noah sure sprinted like the devil was on his heels –Rex couldn't even reach ten feet from him. Then right before he exited the main lounge on the ground floor, he heard Captain Calan calling him.

"Rex."

He stopped and turned to see the Captain jogging towards him.

"Good, you're up. White Knight just asked to see you."

Rex grimaced, "Oh man, now? But I was going to go face the music with Noah."

The Captain raised a questioning brow.

"What for?"

Noah bit his lips for letting it slip, inwardly scolding himself stupid.

"Well, he-we, I mean, were late for training today."

"Right, he signed up for Basic again. And you occasionally joined in. So why were the two of you late?"

"Uh, it's my bad, really," Rex scratched his head nervously.

 _Because I made him stay up late with me while I poured my heart out._

"I had a rough night, needed a friend, and Noah was there, you know?"

Calan frowned, obviously not buying it, but he nodded anyway.

"Well that's one reason. Not good enough, but I know he's a loyal friend, so I respect that."

"That's great, so does that mean Noah can escape from being chewed by Hutton?"

Captain Calan let out a bark of laughter.

"I trust Hutton to teach the cadets well. But well, since I'm checking up on their training today, I can try to lighten his punishment."

Rex beamed and thanked him.

He'd always preferred Calan over Hutton. Calan was less stiff and easy to talk with. He was glad to find out that Calan was also more understanding.

He kept his smile all the way up to the main briefing room, where they'd shifted all the main controls and systems to, setting them against the walls on all sides.

The large round desk at the center that had a screen and a projector where holographic images could be beamed out. Six, Holiday and Bobo were already seated, with a very, tensed looking White Knight appearing on the giant screen before them.

Rex felt his smile fade away on their strained looks.

"Uh, sorry, was I late again?"

"No, Rex, we know you came back late last night so we wanted you to get enough sleep," Holiday forced a smile, making him uneasy.

"Okayyy, well, thanks, I'm fully rested now," Rex drew up a chair and sat down, "So, what's this meeting about?"

* * *

EVO sightings in the outskirts surrounding Kiev, or what used to be called, The Bug Jar.

Locals in the area calling Hunter Cain a hero for stepping up to rid them of the relapse cases that had begun roughly six months back.

Rex wanted to gag. What were the chances of Cain coincidentally showing up where the relapses were happening?

Yet footages obtained by Providence agents of their local news and the situation on hand, showed exactly just that. And the reason why this Intel reached headquarters so late, was because the squadron of agents originally posted to keep watch in Kiev, were actually missing. Their intercom reports were all fraud, and there had been deliberate misinformation provided, delaying the rotation of the next squad that was supposed to be posted there.

By the time the mistake was discovered and a squad quickly dispatched there to check on things, distrust of Providence had already run high.

It hurt to see the locals stone the agents, chasing them away and falsely blaming them for causing the EVO relapse.

The jet landed a little way off from the town closest to Kiev, perched atop a low-rise mound. At their backs, the gentle slopes of undulating land were cropped by vast, brilliant green woods, picturesque against the bright summer sky.

Rex would have enjoyed the scenery, but he was feeling anything but sunny. He wrapped his arms tighter round himself after exiting the ramp.

It hurt a lot, to know that his cure wasn't permanent.

"Rex," Six turned to him, "Are you okay?"

Rex let out a shaky breath, unaware that he'd been holding it.

"Yea, sure, I'll be fine, once we check this out and find out exactly what is going on."

As the situation was delicate, White Knight decided it would be best to send just the two of them over for investigation. Bobo –ever the trusty monkey –wanted to join, citing 'fond' memories of the place. Rex seconded it, preferring the accompany of Bobo's endless drawer of spastic comments to humor himself and take the stress of his shoulders. However, the others felt that an EVO monkey showing up with Rex and Six would be bad publicity for them.

Along the way down the gentle slope, Rex could see the quaint town spread from the foot to miles ahead, cut at a diagonal corner by a tributary that probably spread out from the Dnieper River that came down from the woody uplands, further south in Kiev. Terraced houses interlaid with bungalows and semi-detached homes along the asphalt roads, with trimmed greens speckling the map that was painted in brick browns and sand-washed white.

Rex felt dread weighing down on him so it was like a weary trudge getting to the community square where the appointer governor of Kiev was to receive them. Luckily, a few representatives of the municipality was already waiting for them at the foot of the mound, offering them a ride in modest black sedans.

Rex was rather surprised at the civil escort, having initially expecting nothing short of a beating for being here. But as they entered the seeming calm and quiet town and turned into the central plaza, Rex found that his expectations were 'correctly' met. The crowd that had gathered was huge, and from their hostile stares at the car that slowly pulled through, Rex could feel waves of animosity rise off them.

The representatives parked them right next to a sizeable platform furthest inward and exited, holding the door out for them as if Rex and Six were very important guests. It was almost morbidly comedic, such that Rex couldn't help but twist one half of his lips in a pained smile right before he mustered all his strength to leave safe confines of the vehicle.

The crowd, young and old alike, glared at him whilst murmuring amongst themselves.

Rex felt stone cold, limbs frozen by their icy stares, so he climbed the short stairs up the platform slowly, lagging behind Six and the representatives who led them.

"I apologise, but you'll have to wait a few more minutes as Statesman Yefim was caught up in something," one of the representative informed, no doubt receiving the update through the communication device plugged into his ear.

Six nodded, looking cool as always, and stared over the crowd with his back firmly straight. Rex mimicked Six's posture and he fought to keep himself calm against the stormy faces. They obviously had some form of misunderstanding against Providence, so Rex mentally chanted to himself that he had to keep his quick temper in check.

"Hey," one of the townspeople stepped forward and barked, "You're the guy, isn't it? The freak who is the cause of all this? It's bad enough that you turned the whole world into monsters, and now you're trying to start it again."

Bloody good, the chanting did –Rex lost his cool in an instant.

"What?" Rex bristled at the atrocious accusation, "I wasn't the one who started the Nanite Event. And for your information, I was the one who cured everyone, six years back!"

"Good lot your cure did! It didn't even last –we've got monsters showing up at Kiev again!"

The rest agreed, adding their voices to show their dissent, quickly rising into a chorus of hateful rants.

Rex slowly backed away, feeling like their bombasts were knocking him like an invisible force. His head hurt and he felt angry and distraught, insides kicking up a storm that would definitely send his biometrics reading haywire.

Then someone picked up a stone and threw it at them. Rex flinched like he'd been struck by burning hot coal, even when the stone missed.

Another was about to follow suit, until Six pulled out both his magna blades from his jacket sleeves and waved it menacingly in the air.

The crowd gasped and backed away.

"You see! It's just as Hunter Cain had said –Providence would come and try to finish us off, to contain the spread of the EVO virus."

Other shouts of irrational and terrified accusations followed quickly.

"No, I don't want to get killed!" A woman at the front screamed hysterically and pushed her way back in haste.

Two gunshots suddenly fired, followed by the sound of metal hitting metal.

Six was in a dramatic pose, and Rex guessed that he'd just deflected the bullets. Six was incredibly sharp and lightning fast where he needs to be. Rex would catch Six's motion if he focused, but he hadn't, because his mind was in turmoil.

Then the familiar bald, hulking guy with the grim mouth and nasty disposition stepped forward through the crowd.

"No one is going to die, or get hurt, on my watch, at least, not innocent folk," Cain announced acidly, then pointed his double-barreled rifle at Six and Rex, "I don't want Providence giving these people a harder time than they already have. Get a move on before things get ugly."

It was like he'd stepped on all the minefields inside Rex's head all at once.

"Oh you want ugly?" Rex exploded, nanites kicking into high gear, "Then I'll give you –"

Six flipped behind Rex in a flash and muffled his yells with his palm.

"Cool down, hot head," Six said quietly at his ear, "Don't blow our chance for investigation."

"Ah, I see Providence's finest have finally arrived, and met with our appointed Bailiff," a tall and chubby man well dressed in a suit, noted aloud in a clear, commanding voice as he exited an impressive looking limousine.

Perhaps it was his neatly pressed suit and tie, or the way he nodded and regarded Six and Rex with non-biased eyes. He had an air of refinement as he came up to the front, back straight, stride confident, with two bodyguards following close at his heel.

Rex was sure he was of someone of great importance here, particularly when the crowd parted to let the stately man pass. Plus, the black limo with the long black hood was a big hint.

He passed by Cain and paused awhile to raise his thick, black brows. Then he laughed somewhat nervously at Cain's pointed gun. He gingerly tapped the tip and said in his heavy Ukraine accent, "Now, Mr. Cain, do lower the weapon, please. I know you're just as upset as everyone else that Providence had been… lacking in their duties the last few months. But it's better late than never, as they always say."

"Agent Six, I presume?"

The man went up the platform and offered Six an outstretched hand.

"My, you are the classic picture in those shades," he commented and laughed heartily.

"Statesman Yefim, thank you for agreeing to us being here," Six said, offering his politically correct smile as he shook his hand.

"Yes, well, I couldn't very well disagree, even though Mr. Cain, as well as so many here, were against it-"

-Hunter Cain cleared his throat loudly in a very disgruntled manner –

"-Because I just had to personally thank this young man for the miracle he had done for us all those years ago."

Then the Statesman turned to Rex and gave him a firm handshake.

Rex was amazed at the other's appreciation, which was miles generous compared to the rest.

"Wow, thanks… I don't know what to say, Mr. Yefim. I thought you agreed to the both of us coming here so that you could rant on us, or something, you know? Since our last team was forced to move out or be stoned to death."

Mr. Yefim ran a hand through his dark hair that was streaked with grey and sighed.

"And for that harassing treatment, I hold myself thoroughly accountable. I do apologize on behalf of the townsfolk here. But I hope you understand, tensions are high here and everyone is scared."

Hunter Cain 'harrumphed' loudly and spit at floor.

"They oughta be, since Providence has messed up the 'cure' and now anyone could turn back to being an EVO. Didn't I warn you?" Cain turned to face the crowd and pointed a finger at Six and Rex, "This 'miracle' is just another one of Providence's frauds –a ploy to get everyone sucking up to them and playing as their puppets.

The crowd was easily swayed, complaints rising again.

"Now, now, people," Yefim regarded the crowd in a loud, but steady tone. One of the representatives suddenly pulled out a cordless microphone from his sleeve like a card trick and held it close to Yefim's mouth.

"Calm down," Yefim urged, voice amplified, "As bad as the situation looks like, Providence have assured us that there had been a miscommunication between their headquarters and the team that was initially posted here. And now, since learning about our plight, they've come to investigate the matter."

"Oh sure they're here –probably came to cover up their conspiracy once they've heard that I'd been around."

Yefim's lips turned downwards ever so slightly but he ignored Cain's snide remarks. He continued to address the crowd in a patient, yet firm manner for a few minutes.

"All in good time, I'm sure, we will come to a conclusion and see the light beyond these dark clouds, with Providence's help. Thank you and good day to all," Yefim finished his charismatic speech, seemingly having bought over the townspeople like he'd sprinkled magic dust over them.

Rex figured that Yefim must be a popular and well liked leader for the crowd quickly simmered down. Yefim started down the stairs, beckoning Six and Rex to follow.

"Your flight must have been long, am I right?" Yefim asked, throwing a slight glance over his shoulder, "Let's move to my place for drinks, then we can have a proper chat."

Rex and Hunter Cain shot laser beams at each other before Rex followed off after Six and Yefim.

* * *

It was a short drive back to Yefim's mansion in his limousine, but it offered a picturesque scene of cottages and low-rise apartments lined up in differing heights and size along the elegant promenades, dotted with lush trees and artistic sculptures. It must have rained earlier, for remaining droplets of rainwater that clung to the tiled roofs and windowsills glistening like pearly jewels under the bright afternoon rays.

Rex had never seen a more gorgeous town, newly bathed after a shower and could hardly believe such a beautiful town laid so close to the Bug Jar. If only he'd known at that time, he might have taken the tourist route after completing his mission. But then again, remembering that he would likely face the same hostility as earlier, he supposed it was a good thing he didn't.

Then as soon as it just the three of them alone, at Yefim's lounge room, Six didn't waste time pointing out the obvious.

"You don't completely trust Cain."

Yefim gave a pointed laugh as he added sugar lumps to his tea.

"Why? You don't think that he's doing a good job?" Six continued.

"Oh, he's doing well enough. Just that I wouldn't be the Cabinet member appointed to look over things here as well as the rebuilding of Kiev, if I wasn't known to be prudent."

"Good, you see the wolf under that sheep's clothing, and you want us to bust him," Rex swung a fist in the air for good show.

Yefim laughed again before taking a sip and settling back on the couch.

"I want a second opinion, and from who better, than Providence? You have vast resources and the best scientists. Perhaps you can shed light from another angle on the mystery of our disappearing people or those who suddenly turn EVO without warning.

Cain has been coming down hard on his clean up, patrolling the streets and going into Kiev with our local forces to hunt and _kill_ the EVOs, but," he set his cup on the coffee table and dropped a knotted fist to his knee, sounding woeful, "I don't agree with his cold-blooded methods. I don't want anyone getting hurt. They've been cured once, so I believe they can be cured again."

Rex felt a twist in his gut, knowing exactly how Yefim felt.

It was one of the most contradictory things he had to fight within himself while doing battles with EVOs.

An EVO could be any organism so long as the nanites bonded on a cellular level and took control of its host. So it could be a plant, an animal or human –meaning, someone's mom, or dad, or a lover, a friend or a sibling.

"You're right," Rex stood up, clenched fists by his side, "I did cure them once, so I can most definitely cure them again."

Yefim gave a grateful smile.

"That's all that I needed to hear."

* * *

The Bug Jar that was decrepit and savage was now miles different from what Rex remembered. It was clean, tidy and without mess, closely resembling the neighboring town.

The low-rise apartments were properly patched up, given fresh coats of pants and looked nearly brand new. The streets that used to be pockmarked with craters were filled and looked to have been laid with a new layer of gravel. Debris and wild trees, vines and unruly bushes that grew in disarray were cleared. Buildings that were too damaged were already knocked down and in their place were the steel foundations of new buildings and cordoned worksites there were abandoned since the EVOs reappeared in the city. A new railway track was even laid halfway,

"Wow," Rex commented, "Seems like a lot of clean up work had been going on. Looks pretty decent now."

Six nodded, agreeing, "The Ukraine government has put a lot of effort into restoration works. Kiev used to be their biggest city. It was their economic and cultural center."

"Right, so this place was like New York?"

"Something like that."

Rex whistled, admiring the work put into it. It was a shame the restoration works had to pause with the reappearance of the EVOs. As they moved further in, piles of rubble that had not been removed started showing. Several battered complexes remained standing, huddled in a gloomy section.

"I don't like this," Rex commented, an uneasy feeling pooling in his gut. It could be paranoia but Six also agreed, saying, "Me neither. It's too quiet for a place that's supposed to be running with EVOs."

A soft rustle in the leaves caught Rex's attention. In a split second, he bashed the trunk of a tall tree that had a dense crown, causing it to shake violently.

Someone yelped and fell from the top branches.

 _A person?_

Lightning fast reflexes helped Rex to catch the guy before he hit the ground.

A black haired man who looked quite young, was tall and gangly, and with bushy brows, stared at Rex with an expression that looked like awe.

Then it turned into annoyance.

"Release me!" the guy complained and struggled, smacking Rex's eye as he did so.

"Ow!" Rex cried and unceremoniously dropped him.

"Alright, young man, tell us what were you doing here," Six ordered in a neutral tone as he came over and pulled him up.

"Hiding."

"Okay dude, lucky we found you –we'll take you out of here," Rex made an indication with his thumb.

"No," the guy shook his head furiously, sending his untrimmed hair flopping about, "Cant –must hide from them. They will find me."

"Look, this is a dangerous place to hide –didn't you know this place is starting to be re-infested with EVOs?"

"That's why, this is a good place to hide. It's hard for them to find me here."

Rex quirked a brow, thinking that the young man must have been so scared that he wasn't making any sense.

"Dude, did you get what I was saying? This is the EVOs nest."

"Yes, I know," the guy said agitatedly and frowned.

Six put a hand on the poor sob's back, an action Rex knew well from spending most of his youth under Six's care. That was the closest thing that Six would do to show his concern.

Six acted like an unfeeling statue most of the time even though how he really felt underneath was far from it. His rigorous training and experiences in wars and battles had hardened him, so if one didn't know Six well enough, they'd think he was heartless –but not Rex.

"C'mon, we'll take you home. It's not safe here."

"No, you don't understand," the guy hissed and shrugged off Six's hand, "Home is here. So here is safe."

"What do you mean 'home is here?' You actually live here?" Rex asked, appalled.

He exchanged looks with Six when the guy nodded.

"They don't hurt me here. But outside, they hurt me bad."

Rex pinched in between his eyebrow, realizing that they were talking to a guy that seemed to have the speech capabilities of a preschooler.

"Okay, I'm officially confused. Who are the 'they' that you're referring to? Are 'they' the same people?"

The guy's frown deepened and he sighed in frustration, but before he could say anything, Six held a hand up for silence.

Rex quickly put his fingers to the other's lips, who held his tongue.

In a blink of an eye, Six drew one of his magna blades and threw it dead straight towards one of the windows at the apartment on their left.

Rex turned to see a deformed figure sidestep, dodging Six's deadly blade. It let out an ear-splitting screech and climbed out the window with six legs like an insect.

Rex cursed and pumped out his big cannons on both fists to shoot at it.

"No!" the guy screamed and grabbed Rex's arm.

Rex threw a confused look back to see terrified eyes, then turned back to see Six leaping into action, fencing with four, large, spiny legs, which seemed too hard for his blade to cut through. The mangled remains of a man's body protruded from the center where all six legs joined, with a dozen, oversized, demonic red eyes running from the head down the torso.

"No! Don't fight, please!" the guy begged, "Don't hurt them. They don't hurt me."

Rex had a feeling he meant the EVOs.

"Six, stop! Something's going on here, I think the guy knows them –says they don't harm him."

Six leapt a good distance away but maintained his defensive pose.

"And how do I know that the EVO wouldn't attack us too?"

"I will make them. They listen to me."

Rex thought that he was crazy, but the guy took a few steps forward, titling his head slightly as he stared at the EVO. The EVO faced him and slowly approached as if in a trance.

Rex and Six were equally tensed until the EVO let the guy touch its heads then did a weird, sort of nuzzling action under his palms.

Rex exchanged looks with Six again. Then Six shrugged, seemingly unbothered by it, and went off to retrieve his other sword.

"Okay, that is totally creepy," Rex couldn't stop himself from saying.

The guy gave Rex a pointed glare, lips pulled into a sullen pout.

"Well creepy, but cool," Rex corrected himself and inwardly acknowledged that it was pretty amazing, kind of like how Rex could communicate with nanites, except that he'd never got such a reaction from EVOs.

On thinking that, Rex pulled out a camcorder and started filming them.

"What are you doing?" Six asked, coming next to him, sheathing both his swords.

"Documenting, for Holiday. I think she might be interested to see this."

The EVO started playfully butting its head into the guy's side, and he laughed.

"It's actually kinda cute. Like having an overgrown and ugly pet, but cute," Rex smiled a little as he watched through the lens.

Suddenly, another EVO appeared in the viewfinder, and Rex panicked, before he realized that the EVO that looked like a cross-genetic horse gone wrong, was docile, tottering leisurely towards the main stars.

"Woa, are you seeing this, Six? He's petting it like he owns them, or tamed them. How come we never had such loving pets?" Rex pouted as he watched and recalled the EVOs that Providence used to keep in the Petting Zoo, "Ours always tried to eat me or something."

"Rex, take a look around," Six said pointedly, ignoring Rex's comments.

To his dazed wonder, a circle of EVOs had formed around them, looking peaceful and content. Several of them joined in the show of affection, eagerly crowding the guy and snuggling at his side.

Rex wondered how it was even possible.

Holiday's education force-fed to him over the years, enabled him to classify the EVOs from tell-tale features.

*EVOs that originate from animals and plants tended to exhibit high levels of aggression, as an extension of their base survival instincts. Not that they deliberately wanted to hurt people or get angry, but as their physical form mutates, their characteristics and abilities evolve accordingly.

Holiday helped him understand this by citing how porcupines evolved from rodents –they grew a coat of razor sharp spines so appeared more dangerous and fierce than the other. The same applied to animal and plants EVOs, just ten or twenty times the effect.

But essentially, they behave on primal instincts and do not associate or contemplate the world like humans do. So to see so many plant and animal EVOs, even bug types, amicably flock to this ordinary looking fellow, was a surprise.

There were even a few EVOs that he guessed used to be humans, who appeared composed, though Rex couldn't be sure if they retained their minds like Tuck and his friends or even Quarry. Many humans weren't able to control the rouge nanite influences that causes severe disruptions to thought processes, like that one time when *Noah was turned into an EVO by Van Kleiss, or Holiday's younger sister, *Beverly, who used to be an incurable EVO.

Rex swept his camcorder in a slow round, until he found the guy suddenly standing before him, blocking the lens.

"You are recording," the guy looked unhappy and sounded tensed, "They use this too, to spread lies about us."

He snatched the camcorder out of Rex's hand.

"Hey! Give me that!"

Rex lunged for it but the guy was fast and nimble, twisting out of the way. Instead of helping, Six crouched and put his ear to the ground.

"Six?"

Rex paused his efforts, then noticed the EVOs around them tense up all of a sudden, twitching nervously.

"A few jeeps, three, maybe four, fast approaching," Six informed.

"They are here! With the Deceiver!" the guy hissed, face contorted, and turned on his heel, bounding away as if for his dear life.

The EVOs followed suit in a mad scramble, leaping or sprinting or scuttling away on their mutated limbs.

One glance at Six told Rex all that they needed to do –to give these EVOs a chance to slip away until they can fully understand what was going on.

Engines roared loudly as the jeeps came into view, accompanied by the sound of rifles and machine guns firing. Hunter Cain was in a standing position on one of the jeeps, leaning his arms over the front frame to support a bazooka.

Rex could almost see the evil grin on Cain's face even from the distance before the missile launched, smoke trailing in its path.

Rex caught the missile with his giant nanite fist and let it explode harmlessly within his clasps whilst Six leapt around like a ninja, deflecting the rain of bullets.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Rex frowned, thinking the shout didn't quite match Cain's voice, till he saw Statesman Yefim poking his head out the side, sitting behind Cain. Yefim raised an arm to order a ceasefire as the troop closed the distance, swerving to a stop before him and Six.

"My goodness," Yefim exclaimed rather crossly as he climbed off the jeep, "There's a horde of EVOs and you just let all of them get away!"

Rex got pissed at his conflicting instructions.

"Hell yea, better that then let them all be shot in cold-blooded murder. I thought you didn't want any of them dead?"

"Well, of course not –which was why I insisted to follow Cain on his patrols to see how he handles things-"

"Funny way of saying that, Sir," Rex spat, interrupting him, "When you have allowed Cain to bear down on them with weapons."

Yefim's lips stretched into a grim line and he looked positively ill.

"Only because Cain has assured me that it was only for self-defense. But through his binoculars, he spotted a bunch of them attacking a man, so we ordered the troops to open fire to scare them off."

Cain gave an exaggerated laugh.

"I don't see what all the fuss is about for firing at them. Murder? It's not murder if they are already dead. The nanites are a virus that has already changed them –they're no longer who they were. They're monsters that need to be slaughtered before the virus spread."

Rex bristled at his lies again, and Six squeezed his shoulder as a silent indication to hold his temper.

"That isn't true, Cain. We have been through this many times. Providence have already properly explained the nanite phenomena to world leaders across international channels for countless of times in the past," Six calmly refuted, then turned to Yefim, "I'm sure you're already well aware of this."

"Yes, of course, but with the situation becoming as such, Providence have to start relooking into the nanite problem and identify the causes of the arising relapses," Yefim debated worriedly and climbed off the jeep.

"And in the meantime, until you can find a solution for this, I also have to do whatever that I can to protect my people. Speaking of which," Yefim took a few steps forward and glanced around, "Where is that young man that you said you saw?"

Cain's sardonic smile was wiped off his face and he looked thoroughly pissed, giving Rex the strange feeling that Cain wanted that guy dead.

"Did you see anyone, earlier?" Yefim looked between Rex and Six, looking genuinely worried.

"Yes, but we didn't manage to save him in the stampede –the EVOs were in a mad rush to escape and the man disappeared before we could do anything," Six lied.

Rex simply nodded, playing along, guessing that Six probably also found the whole situation very fishy.

Yefim gave a heavy sigh and ran his hand through his hair, messing the neat part down the center.

"That's very unfortunate. Then I suppose, you weren't able to cure any of them either?"

Rex shook his head.

"Sorry, Sir, I didn't get the chance. We just chanced upon them and hardly had time to react before we heard you guys coming."

Yefim nodded, looking very disappointed, but he looked like he bought their words and got up the jeep again.

Cain, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes at Rex, oozing anger, before returning to the vehicle. Rex thought they were going to continue forwards, but Yefim insisted he'd enough excitement and bade them to turn back to their town.

Once they were far gone, Rex turned to Six with brows furrowed.

"Cain knows the guy's power, doesn't he?" Rex stated.

"Probably," Six pushed up his glasses along his nose.

"Cain must have done something to him and the rest of the EVOs. Look at how they ran –they were freaking scared. That's why that guy says it's safer here –there are no people around so they have plenty of places to hide."

"Yes, that's one good assumption," Six agreed and nodded, then pointedly raised a brow at Rex, "But might have been better if we could get Holiday to look over the video. Maybe she could run it over with the psychology department and come up with some explanations for the EVOs behavior."

At that, Rex smacked his head and groaned.

"Shoot, the camcorder's with him."

* * *

"Can I have a glass of your famous gin? Make that two," Rex ordered as he took a seat by the bar.

"I don't drink," Six raised a brow, "And you don't have money to pay."

Rex swiveled round to brace his back on the counter and leaned both elbows on it.

"Humor me, Six," Rex begged, head rolling back like a dead man, "I'm bored."

They spent the last four days toeing around the Bug Jar, careful not to cross paths with Cain. It was easy enough as they were noisy on their jeeps, so Six and Rex could avoid them. Their priority was to locate the young man whom the EVOs seemed to 'adore', before Cain did.

Rex knew the importance of their mission, but he couldn't help feeling bored. Investigative tracking wasn't really his thing, or his strength. He mostly just followed Six around, who remarked in an impressed tone that the guy was skilled in covering up his and the EVOs tracks. And mind you, Six wasn't someone who got easily impressed.

Rex couldn't appreciate the same thing that Six saw. To Rex, it wasn't fun at all, running around the wasted parts of Kiev with showers soaking them through. Though it was Summer, it rained a lot in Kiev and when the Sun was out, it was extremely hot. It was like the weather was a tempestuous woman, mood swinging from opposite ends of the spectrum without warning. Rex went from bone chilled one moment to feeling heated like sausages on a grill.

But since he had a strong immune system compared to ordinary humans, he wasn't worried about catching a cold or falling sick under the constant exposure to the drastic weather. It just sucked that he'd had to scrub his sneakers till his hands were raw to get the muddy gunk and stains out.

After days of careful searching, there wasn't a single EVO in sight. They even went round in circles a couple of times at fake tracks deliberately made to throw off the tail. They nearly bumped into Cain's troops, but they quickly hid to avoid being seen.

Six reasoned that if they wanted to be able to find out more about the guy's abilities and straighten out the situation with the relapsing EVOs, they needed to be able to talk to the guy without Cain seeing them.

Otherwise, Cain would simply shoot them all till kingdom come.

"Two gins," the pump, middle-aged barmaid set on the marble table top, "On the house."

Six reached for his wallet under his coat, but the lady stopped his hand, shaking her head.

"I insist, let me pick up your tab. It's the least I can do to thank you good people for returning my daughter back to me."

She offered Rex a warm smile and Rex understood that she meant the Worldwide Cure. Six raised his glass to her before taking a swig. Rex followed suit, now seated sideways and facing Six. Then he coughed at the strong burn that assaulted him and sputtered in between inhaling huge breaths.

The woman laughed lightly.

"Not a good drinker, are you?"

"I just don't drink often enough," Rex wipe his mouth with his sleeve.

Six cleared his throat but couldn't stop a smile, annoying Rex.

"Because once he drinks over his limit, he can't function properly."

Rex made a face, but was too tired to refute that and downed the rest of his glass.

Whilst he coughed madly with violent shakes wracking his shoulders, Six made small talk, mostly asking questions to learn more about the townspeople and the happenings. He probably saw it as good opportunity since the rest of the people they've passed by so far, didn't seem to want to talk much. Some looked scared and distrusting of them while others outright insulted them, leaving Six to drag Rex away before he blew up at their faces.

The woman chattered away, talking about the few guest they have, even though it was only early evening. The regulars hardly come by anymore, even though this bar serves the best drinks in the town. She explained that after dark was usually when the EVOs strike, so it was more dangerous, especially after lights out.

"And that's why the curfew was made –no one to be on the street after nine," Six added, nodding to himself.

Rex, recovered from his coughs, rasped out throatily, "Good load of bullshit that is."

Six and him were no exception to the rule –Statesman Yefim made that clear on the first evening after showing them to their hotel. The only ones exempted were Cain and the security forces.

"Funny coincidence that Cain and his troops are usually the ones who chance upon the EVOs. I mean, why don't the EVOs come out in the day? Not like they're vampires," Rex scoffed, highly suspicious.

The woman gave a gasps and nearly dropped the mug she was wiping dry.

"What are you suggesting? That Hunter Cain could be the cause of these strange abnormalities?"

"Well, I'll bet my two cents that –"

Six elbowed Rex in his gut, shutting him up.

"We're just saying that things are more than meets the eye," Six said in a controlled tone, but Rex could hear his strain beneath it.

Six shared his suspicions with Rex on this, but he'd stressed to Rex to keep as low a profile here as possible. Not like they didn't attract enough murmurs and head turns and the handful of grudging glares. Six explicitly instructed Rex on the importance of handling the situation tactfully.

Since Cain was Yefim's appointed bailiff, he was given authority over security issues, including the EVOs problem and 'pesky' Providence agents who went out of line. Six warned that all they needed was give Cain one excuse, and Cain could officially chase them out of town. And when Six gives orders with both brows knotted together, one is compelled to follow it, or die –so to speak.

"Well I'd say, if you ask me, I don't buy that cold hearted beast for a moment either," the woman surprisingly agreed, "A lot of folks here, side with him, but I don't feel safe with a fellow who shoots first before talking."

"Lady," Rex grinned and made a gun with his index and thumb, "You rock my world."

"Hey, Miss," someone made a click with his fingers from the front table, "Turn the volume up on the TV. Let's hear the news."

Rex turned to the large flat screen at the side to see the words "Wanted, EVO Carrier," run across the bottom screen whilst a footage played, showing the EVO-charmer guy whom Rex and Six had been looking for.

"Hey! That's the guy who stole my camcorder!" Rex exclaimed, and got an annoyed grunt from Six.

"Good gracious, that's Yefim's boy –he's still human? Thought the last report said he went EVO months back."

"What?" Rex threw the barmaid a sideways glance in surprise.

Six showed his with a raised brow.

Turning back to the television screen, Rex watched a very shaky footage of the guy running for his life like the person filming was chasing after him. It looked like they were somewhere within Kiev, where the restoration works were half-complete.

Then jeeps loaded with troops thrust into view from the sides of the video, shooting at the guy, who seemed to be incredibly nimble, weaving and twisting this way and that to avoid being hit.

"He runs fast," Six observed and Rex agreed. The guy was still ahead of those jeeps.

"An ordinary guy wouldn't be able to run that fast, right?" Rex added.

The roar of the jeeps and gunfire were tuned out and replaced with a reporter's voice.

"The EVO hunters were out on patrol when they've stumbled across someone whom they believe is the root cause of the EVO relapses here in the last six months.

Nikolay, the son of the Statesman Yefim, was one of the earliest reported EVO relapse, originally believed to have gone missing. Yet he's clearly seen here, apparently cured and back to his old self, until Cain and his troops caught this rare footage-"

The reporter paused whilst the recording showed the guy –Nikolay –suddenly transform when the jeeps were catching up to him. Spikes protruded from his spine and shot out towards the jeeps, causing wheels to puncture or forcing the troops to take immediate swerves, toppling the jeeps on the side.

His clothing were ripped through as the rest of his body continued mutating, muscles and limbs pulsating, growing bulkier and stretching taller. An extra pair of limbs burst from both sides of his pelvis, rapidly growing and lengthening till it hit the ground and grew a large, jagged looking feet. Those ankles split, bones continuing to grow backwards, folded up along the new legs till it rested its serrated tips over his shoulders.

Those among the troops who have recovered their stances first, continued to shoot at the EVO. But the bullets ricochet off the EVO harmlessly like his skin had become a tough armor. His skin had turned a deep maroon and charcoal grey like the sickening color of dried blood and ash caking his form in patches. And his flesh had grown over his face, masking his features, ending in a raised ridge along the crown of his head.

Rex felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand as he watched the EVO move lightning fast, jumping from soldier to soldier, easily decapitating their weapons. His powerful form and moves struck Rex as eerily familiar, even though this was the first time that Rex had seen him.

"-As you can see, he has the ability to control his transformations at will, just like the world famous, 'Generator Rex', whom we all know. But he obviously doesn't share Rex's hero agenda, as you can tell from how he lashes out at Cain's forces," the report continued, "Cain believes that while Rex has the ability to cure EVOs, this particular EVO might be able to do the opposite –create them."

Then the EVO charged up to the footage screen, arms flanking the sides like he was snatching it. He didn't see Cain firing a bazooka from a distance behind him.

"The Grower of machines, help us."

Then the missile hit, exploding and blacking out the video.

Rex felt his blood run cold. For sure, that EVO looked different from before, perhaps because a relapse didn't guarantee the same look.

But there were notable points, like it similar way that it fought. And that raspy voice, deep and throaty –coming out somewhere from the EVO without a mouth or a face –Rex knew that voice and knew only one EVO who had ever called him that.

But he just didn't understand why Noface begged for his help.

* * *

 **Author's Comments:**

Are you people surprised? XD

Hee hee, is Noface a friend? Or a foe? Read on to find out….

 **Footnotes:**

*Noah was turned into an EVO by Van Kleiss :

Recap episode 22, "Rampage." Poor Noah was induced with Van Kleiss' unstable nanites and Rex was forced to cure him before it became permanent. But Noah was naughty and playful, giving Rex a lot of trouble! X3

*Beverly, who used to be an incurable EVO :

She made few appearances as a giant, spider like EVO. She is eventually cured in season 2 in a drastic turn-around in "A Family Holiday."

*Types of EVOs:

In case anyone is interested, here's a proper guide on the classifications. I thought it's pretty interesting so I've tried to dabble a bit on them in my story, to give a contrast on how NoFace turned the EVOs docile. Oh and FYI, I totally made that thing up about porcupines evolving from rodents, lol. I just found the closest resembling animal on the net to give an example.

wiki/Exponentially_Variegated_Organism


	7. A new ally

**Chapter Seven: A new ally**

(In Kiev. Rex makes an unexpected friend.)

* * *

At Yefim's place, the butler opened the door for them to enter even before Six rang the doorbell.

He showed them to the lounge where Yefim stood, back facing them, staring into a photo frame.

"Cain is going to kill my son," Yefim said solemnly, sounding more calm than Rex thought he should be, until he turned around and Rex saw his deathly pale face.

Where Yefim used to carry himself with a sort of distinguished air, with his back straight, he now hunched forward, looking small, defeated.

He waved his butler away as he sank onto the couch, holding out the photo he'd been staring at.

"My son, Nikolay," Yefim said as Six took the photo frame from him.

"Yes, we know. We saw the news," Six informed and sat on the opposite couch with Rex following suit.

"Well, the news didn't tell you that he is probably around your age, Rex."

"Is that even important?" Rex couldn't help sounding exasperated.

Though some questions are answered, like how those other EVOs seemingly listened to NoFace, a hundred new questions sprang up to torture his mind.

"No, it isn't," Six answered for Yefim, "But it should have been information that Providence would know –that I should have known, but I didn't."

Yefim sighed and buried his face in his hands as Six aimed a high, questioning brow at him.

"I pulled some strings to keep it secret," Yefim admitted.

Rex was on him in an instant, faster than Six could stop him.

"You ass! Do you know the lives you are endangering by keeping such a secret? After he relapsed, you should have told us that he was NoFace! He's a walking scum like Van Kleiss," Rex spat, shaking Yefim angrily by his collar.

"Rex! Would you calm down and release him?" Six ordered, tone menacing, putting a vice-like grip on his wrist.

Rex bit his tongue and relented, shoving Yefim back down on the couch and stomping to the side of the room, leaning against the tall window frame.

"So you recognize him," Yefim finally let out a shaky voice, "Well, then it gives me all the more reason to believe that keeping my silence was correct. I know the bad blood between you two that happened way back. And if I had told you from the start that I wanted your help to find and save my son, you would never have agreed!"

"Providence will never shun their back on helping people, and neither will Rex," Six vouched, tone firm, "We will do whatever it takes to find him and cure him, but if he is incurable like before, we'll have to lock him up to keep him from doing harm."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Yefim snapped, "I want you to keep him safe from Cain, not keep him in a cage."

Rex snorted and threw back a searing glare.

"Speak for yourself. You know, I can't believe I'm saying this, but for the first time, I agree with Cain's methods –your son ought to be put down. Do you know how dangerous he was? He wanted to wreak havoc on the rest of the world in the name of some twisted revenge for being left in the Bug Jar. He fought viciously and had an entire army of EVOs at his disposal and now it looks like he's repeating history."

"That's the history you know!" Yefim argued, hands balling into fist, looking thoroughly shaken up, "But you didn't know him after he was cured –after the miraculous Worldwide Cure," Yefim's tone deflated, becoming softer, "You didn't know him when he wasn't NoFace, didn't know him as Nikolay, my son. After I was reunited with him, Nikolay had shown nothing but compassion and good manners. He behaved well, never got angry, or lost his patience."

"Then if he was no trouble, why did you hide his identity from Providence? You should know that Providence had repeatedly sought assistance from the Ukraine government to help identify NoFace. He was in our top list of most dangerous EVO in the world, so it was necessary to send him for rehabilitation even if he's cured," Six commented.

Back then, six years ago, Rex somehow managed to dissolve the shield enclosing the Bug Jar whilst curing the world with his four Meta-Nanites that had bonded with his Omega-1. The Providence division at Ukraine had quickly moved in then, retrieving the hundreds and thousands of confused stragglers there who were just cured from their EVO forms.

It was an insurmountable task, but they spent the last few years identifying those people and returning them to their loved ones. Those who remained disorientated and confused, were relocated to rehabilitation facilities where they were properly reeducated before they were able to reestablish themselves back into society.

But amongst those cured EVOs, one elusive figure remained missing and unidentified –NoFace.

"Oh believe me, I didn't know he was NoFace at the beginning as well. I was abroad for work, so I never knew what hit Kiev until it was too late."

Yefim went on to explain that Nikolay never said anything about being NoFace after they were reunited, and Yefim didn't want to pry into the depressing past either. All Yefim wanted was for him to be safe, happy and have a normal life, away from the public eye.

As a Statesman, Yefim's private life was under constant scrutiny, and he didn't want Nikolay to be the victim of media bombardment if it was discovered that he used to be stuck at the Bug Jar. That was why he used his connections to keep Nikolay's disappearance as an EVO a secret.

"But since that first time when I saw him change back into an EVO, it got me thinking, about a lot of his strange behaviors and habits. And from there, I guessed that he might have been NoFace."

"Strange behaviors like?" Six's brow climbed impossibly higher.

Yefim averted his gaze and looked both saddened and perplexed as he listed them.

Nikolay would rather talk to plants and animals and even insects, than to other people. He has caught so many of those little critters and made such a jungle out of their backyard that Yefim had to erect a sort of Zoo in their other private estate.

And the only people Nikolay could comfortably talk to and regularly hang out with, were those who used to be EVOs like him in the Bug Jar. Yefim was never comfortable with it, but he let his son have the freedom to wander off to Kiev with them.

"And you never saw any issues with them plotting together?" Rex seethed, refraining from going over to give the Statesman a good clout on his head.

"Well, I just assumed they had formed a tight bond and were good friends, gathered together, reminiscing the past –it was harmless."

"Yea, until he started turning them back into EVOs," Rex scoffed again.

"Rex, we don't know that for sure," Six reminded, tone remained neutral.

"No, we don't, but we do know that after he relapsed, others followed. Plus, you know how he used to be able to telepathically command the other EVOs –we saw it happen again the other time. Who is to say that his powers haven't evolved, becoming stronger? Like Van Kleiss –he was suddenly able to turn others into EVOs at one point."

Six nodded, "That is also true, but everything still remains debatable."

Rex folded his arms whilst he marched back to the couch and stood in front of Six.

"Which means you are sitting on the fence. This is so unlike you, Six," Rex pointed out, head tilted.

Six faced upwards at Rex with fathomless gaze hidden behind his dark specs.

"I'm just trying to keep a cool head and an open mind. Which you should too, since you were the one who used to teach me that. I think you're letting your grudge against him cloud your better judgment."

Rex flinched at the onslaught. Not like it was anything new –Six was known for not mincing his words, but Rex couldn't understand why Six was going soft at the wrong time.

"Why are you even bothering to speak up for NoFace?"

"Because he could have attacked us with his EVO pals that afternoon, but he didn't. And because he specifically asked for your help on TV."

Rex flinched again at the two arrows that Six had let fly that hit the mark. In truth, Rex was tormented by these conflicting feelings since watching the news earlier that evening. Rex was usually hot-headed and never thought twice before throwing his nanite punches at assholes. But at the same time, his heart was soft like creampuffs and jelly, and would drop his fists even if Providence ordered him to fight.

He didn't know what to make of NoFace since running into him after so many years. Sure, Rex was angry at him for trying to kill him every time they met, but it wasn't like he hated him. And it wasn't like he wanted to jump to conclusions and assume that NoFace was still committed to viewing Rex as his nemesis, since it seems like currently, NoFace had forgotten about his grudge against Rex.

But a lot of lives were at stake, and Rex and Six had no clue on NoFace's intent nor Cain's real plans for that matter.

"Wait, so you did see him that afternoon with the group of EVOs," Yefim pointed out.

"Yes, and just like in the past, when he was his former EVO form, we saw that he has regained his telepathic abilities with nanites in other EVOs. Meaning, he could connect with them, command them to do his bidding, which makes him a level 5 threat," Six recounted.

Yefim looked utterly distressed, face scrunched up completely, aging years in that instant.

"Please, you have to give my son a chance," Yefim begged, "You have to believe me, he is not as he once was. He doesn't have a bad bone in his body. I've lost him once, I can't lose him again."

Rex stalked off, too lost in his inner war to give a proper reply.

Anyway, Six was there to play the diplomat, assuring Yefim that they'd do whatever they can to help, before following after Rex.

* * *

"Are you two watching this crap?"

"White Knight, aren't you a sight for sore eyes! But you know, we're in the middle of a mission so it's a bad time to call," Rex joked dryly as he nervously regarded the holographic mini-screen floating above Six's wrist.

White Knight was showing them an even smaller screen playing a news telecast of Cain on the podium, giving his hate speech on EVOs and Providence.

"Unfortunately, yes. We're sitting amongst the international press."

Rex slapped his forehead with his hand, exasperated that Six didn't try to deny it.

"Then you should know that the interview is broadcasted live, to over a hundred countries and thousands of news channels."

"Yes, we know that. Unfortunately, we can't do anything about it."

Rex sighed and grumbled under his breath, "Great, we are sooo dead when we get back."

White Knight was a mask of fury, barking at the both of them to find ways to clear up Cain's false accusations and get on the good side of the reporters on site.

"How?" Rex gave Six a helpless look once White Knight was offline, "You know I only know how to talk diplomacy with my fists."

Six cleared his throat in answer, meaning, he had no solution either.

Rex was annoyed that Cain was running on good streak. He and Six was able to confirm that Cain didn't manage to catch NoFace. But since Cain caught the footage of Nikolay turning EVO, he sent the copy online to every station across the globe, capturing worldwide attention.

Over the next two days, the government office of Ukraine received a flurry of calls and emails so Yefim had no choice but to call for an international press conference.

So here Rex and Six were, seated in the center of the auditorium and hurting their ears with Cain's ranting. Cain asserts that NoFace was dangerous as he could turn nanites in other bodies unstable, turning them into EVOs, then taking command over their minds, using them to terrorize the town.

Rex and Six debated for long hours into the previous night over the cause for the relapse of the other EVOs. Cain and NoFace were of course, the biggest suspects, but they had no evidence to determine who or what was the real cause. Even so, it irked Rex that Cain was up on stage slamming NoFace and acting the righteous hero when he could very well be the main perpetrator himself. Rex had crossed paths with Cain several times in the past and learnt how the mercenary was not partial to pulling to dirty tricks. So it'd be no surprise if all this was an elaborate ploy to further Cain's schemes –whatever that was.

"Bullshit," Rex spat, catching a few turn of heads from the reporters seated around him, "We've been here a whole week and haven't seen any EVO terrorizing anyone. In fact, Cain had them all scared off back to Kiev and they've been hiding there."

"Really? How would you know?" the one next to him asked and held the recorder towards him.

"Duh, we saw them – the EVOs, I mean. We saw them early in the week hiding in Kiev, then they got scared off by Cain and we haven't seen them since."

The others surrounding him seemingly lost interest with Cain's speech, and launched a furry of questions at Rex.

The commotion didn't escape Cain's notice, as he deliberately accused Providence of producing another nanite 'pet' like Rex, to counter, so that they could keep themselves in prominence.

Rex was completely rattled, and couldn't stand to keep shut anymore.

"Are you crazy? We're too busy fighting off other evil doers to give ourselves more trouble!" Rex yelled, rising from his seat.

All heads turned to Rex, like vultures hungry for more juicy news.

"Rex, don't make a scene. There are cameras here," Six warned and tugged his arm, but Rex was too incensed to listen.

"Then how do you explain Nikolay's relapse? Do you admit to your failing powers with the cure? It probably isn't permanent, is it?"

"Well it's-" Rex faltered, tongue tied because he did indeed doubt in himself, "I mean I don't know, but that's why I'm here, with Six, to investigate. Whatever is the cause of all these relapses, Providence will get to the bottom of it."

"Excellent, and while we wait for you like we did the last six months, this entire town will turn EVO. I say, that we crack down hard on NoFace before he complicates matters."

"Bullshit. How can you be so sure that NoFace is even capable of creating other EVOs? Where is your proof?"

"Well, I don't have any concrete proof. But I'm making an assumption on the closest possibility-"

"That's kinda a broad assumption then, don't ya think?" Rex scoffed loudly, interrupting.

Cain remained unfazed and simply continued into the microphone.

"Based on real examples that had happened before, such as Van Kleiss. The rest of the world doesn't know it, but my sources tell me that Van Kleiss was able to create EVOs at one point, after one of his encounters with Rex."

A collective gasps could be heard.

Rex gritted his teeth, realizing he was trapped.

"Well? No rebuttals? So that was true then."

Cain smirked, enraging Rex even more.

"So you see, ladies and gentlemen, Providence has kept such important details secrets from the world, though they tout themselves as the heroic organization. But I ask you, how can you trust them, when they cannot be truthful to the public with information that matters the most?"

Hundreds of pairs of disapproving eyes, distrusting eyes, stared at Rex and Six. Rex couldn't tell how Six took it, but he sure as hell didn't feel well. A wave of nausea hit Rex, more powerful than the tidal sound blasts from that damned Blaster Prince over three weeks ago.

"We might even be entrusting our lives into the very hand that caused us all these misery in the first place. If Nikolay could relapse and become NoFace again and have his powers evolve, who's to say that Rex won't one day evolve as well, to become an EVO creator himself?"

"Please, don't insult me and put me with the likes of Van Kleiss. I've risked my life more than enough times trying to cure EVOs and rescue lives to be run over by your rotten mouth," Rex snarled, barely able to keep himself from shaking in fury.

"And yet you haven't cured a single one since stepping in."

"You know as well as I do that the EVOs are hiding. We can't even find them."

"Well, funny coincidence, don't you think? Why don't you come right out and tell us that you're in league with them. Maybe you're under NoFace's command as well, or maybe, you were the one who activated his nanites and turned him EVO in the first place."

"Excuse me, Rex needs a break. We'll take our leave first," Six promptly stood at that point and grabbed Rex, dragging him out, which was just as well as Rex felt like he was going to blow.

* * *

"This is a trap, you know it is," Rex grumbled, looking sour, "Those vultures are going to eat us alive, and you know it."

Six arched a brow as he adjusted his tie.

"It's just a luncheon, Rex."

"Exactly! And we are the meat!" Rex exclaimed, waving his hands exaggeratedly in the air, "You know that it's going to go down bad like the stupid press conference this morning."

Six gave a rare smile and for a moment, Rex thought he'd gone bonkers.

"No, it would be better. Because it's a private event. Yefim invited selected press members only, and he didn't invite Cain. So it's just us, and the chance to explain the situation."

"Great! Then how come I don't feel optimistic?"

It was a fairly short walk to Yefim's mansion, about twenty minutes, since their hotel was close to his place. Rex would have felt more at home bunking inside the jet, but it was parked at the outskirts and Yefim wanted them close by.

He wished they could have reached later, preferably when the luncheon ended, as the moment he entered with Six, everyone fell silent as if death came to visit.

All eyes were glued to them and he felt uneasy, walking stiffly to where Yefim was.

He briskly counted roughly thirty to forty guests in the room, who stared at him awhile before returning to their conversations.

"Ah, Rex, Six, good for you to show up. I was worried after the… debate this morning, you'll be too upset to come."

Six gave a polite laugh.

"Where there's good food, Rex will show up."

Rex cracked up in spite of the knots in his tummy –it was always comical whenever Six joked. Not that he was funny, but it seemed so out of his character that it was the joke itself.

"Well, I'm glad that's one more thing we have in common," a middle-aged lady commented with a bright smile, coming up next to Rex.

Rex gave her a puzzled look and she laughed.

"The first is that we're both EVOs, well, I mean at least I used to be. I still remember what it was like being stared at like a Zoo animal everywhere that I went."

"Cool, I mean, about being conscious of it. Not a lot of people were aware or could control themselves," Rex nodded.

She rolled her eyes and downed her glass.

"Oh yea, but believe me, sometimes I wished I was totally out of it, like, clueless to what I was doing, you know? The way people freaked out, god, it's horrible."

Rex couldn't help but laugh at her dramatic acting.

"Yea, I know. I get the Zoo animal feeling too."

"Nooo!" she gave a dramatic horrified look, "A looker like you? No way! Trust me, you don't look half as bad as I did when I was an EVO, being slimy, full of teeth and all. Scared my husband and daughter half to death. God that idiot, he chased me out the house with a broomstick, you know? He only realized that I was totally sane when I burped out his name, or something that sounds like it."

"Wow, so what happened next?"

"Oh he gave me a nice spot to stay in the basement. Damn he wouldn't give me the bed –says I'll make too much a mess of it!"

Rex laughed whilst she shared with him all the funny details about living with her family then. She was funny and candid and eased up the nervousness in his stomach, sort of the way Noah was able to do. Rex never even noticed that Six and Yefim weren't by his side –they've gone off to speak to some others elsewhere in the room.

"God, I love him to bits. Glad he stuck by me, ugliness and all. Guess it's true they say 'love is blind.'"

"Then you must be relieved that you were consciously aware of yourself, otherwise, you would have made a meal out of them."

She made a face, prompting him to laugh.

"I think I feel bile coming up –need a drink to wash it down, quick."

"Well, allow me!" Rex said candidly and went off to the drinks table.

He helped to get both of them drinks, and she joined him halfway, introducing him to some other people.

"Wow, feels kinda overwhelming, as in how everyone here are all doing the same thing. Kinda feels like when I'm in Providence HQ, except that we take down baddies, and you people report news on baddies."

A young guy laughed and pointed at his video camera that was slung over his shoulder.

"And don't forget, we report news on good guys taking down baddies."

"Yea, so I've seen. So is that why you're still holding onto your camera? Expecting something to happen?"

"Well, you never know, so it's good to be prepared," the guy replied.

"Right, classic case of occupational obsession," someone else joked.

"Well, aren't we all?" another piped up, prompting the circle to laugh.

Surprisingly, it was great –Rex was actually having a good time, talking to these reporters who were nice and friendly. He wasn't getting chewed up like he thought. And as he glanced across to where Six and Yefim was, it seemed like they were having a serious conversation, probably Six doing his diplomacy speech.

Finally, things were looking up.

Then Rex found himself suddenly knocked over from the back of his knees and he laid splat on his back, staring up the ceiling in disorientation.

Screams sent him bolting back up and he found Six holding back the arms of one of the guys in the lounge. The guy struggled and yelled vulgarities at Six, but his words came out kind of garbled.

Rex caught a few people whipping out their film cameras and cellphones to record Six and Rex felt nervous again.

"Six, what are you doing?"

"He attacked you."

"What? I didn't see anything," the lady closest to them commented.

"I saw him. He's got a fast whip."

Rex became on edge, nanites churning in frenzy. He trusted Six to be sharp and quick enough to see things that other people couldn't catch.

And Six was right – multiple tentacles shot out from the guy's sleeves, coiling around Rex in a deathly embrace.

Rex gritted his teeth against the incredible crushing force that seemed to suck the energy out of him.

Six deftly drew out his magna blades and sliced off the tentacles, which slithered lifelessly onto the ground. But before Rex could catch his breath, the EVO grew new ones at alarming speed, shooting towards Rex and Six and wrapped them up.

The guests erupted into shouts of shock, and panic, with more than half stampeding out the place. Others stayed along the far wall, curiosity and danger seemingly ingrained in their brain as they continued filming.

Rex was coiled tight like a mummy and nearly suffocated, with eyes almost popping out his sockets. So tight, it seemed to crush his limbs against his body, disabling him from creating any nanite constructs to bust him out from its coils. Hence, Rex was forced to charge the nanites inside him and generate an electric current to crackle over his skin, jolting the EVO and forcing it to release its hold before it crushed his lungs.

Six's tortured cries stabbed him, since he was electrocuted along with the EVO. Rex silently apologized to Six, but knew a few days rest would put Six back to good health since Rex only produced a voltage that was enough to stun, and not burn.

Rex brought out his giant nanite hands and wrapped the EVO within his grasps before the EVO could recover its strength.

"Alright, do your thing…" Rex said to himself.

He shut his eyes and focused on the connection –to reach into the other's nanites and deactivate them.

But after a few moments, Rex was aware that something was wrong. It was subtle, but he could sense some kind of interference that kept those nanites activated, or was it simply an incurable EVO?

Rex didn't have the luxury of finding out, for grotesque sounding noises and shouts of terror and disgust filled the room.

Rex broke his connection with the EVO and watched, horror-struck, as the other people in the room, started mutating, one after the other.

It was like his nightmare coming true –the world shaken up with EVOs again.

The ready ones lunged at him first with their transfigured forms –limbs and tails and strange appendages looking deadly powerful. Rex could barely catch his breath whilst he somersaulted and ducked and rolled to avoid their blows, all the while shielding an unconscious Six at the same time. But he could hardly dodge them all within the cramped room and got hit a few times.

His entire body screamed in pain from being staked though the flesh or pounded by a force like a ton. Rex was panicking now, wildly dishing out his nanite weapons, shooting with his big laser blasters or knocking the EVOs with his giant spinning weights –anything to defend himself and protect Six.

The room was thrashed, walls and ceiling punctuated with holes.

Rex's mind screamed in frenzy that things were getting out of hand. It would be bad if any of the EVOs were loose on the town. Six was out cold and he wouldn't be able to deal with all of them on his own.

A few of the EVOs started retreating, exiting through the giant cracks in the room.

Rex dropped Six a while and quickly whipped out half a dozen whips to hold them back. Then he supercharged his nanites and sent an electric current to surge through his whips, shocking them.

A hard blow to his back cut his attack short. He groaned weakly, and barely felt himself being lifted before he was violently smashed onto the ceiling, then thrown towards the floor.

His skull exploded in pain like it was split open and his eyes watered. Everything pulsated and blurred in his view, like his eyes couldn't focus. His body throbbed, hurting so much that he could only let out a soundless scream.

Something that looked spiky and really lethal hung above his head. Rex forced himself to roll off the side before it sank into his chest.

Suddenly, that spiky limb got blown right in front of Rex's eyes.

Aside from the guttural roars and squeals that came from the EVOs, Rex could faintly make out the roar of a jeep approaching.

Rex was on his feet in that instant, energy renewed despite the pain. He was just in time too, for Cain came into view from one of the gaping holes and fired another bazooka straight at Rex.

Rex cursed, grabbed Six and leapt upwards on his powered boots, smashing through the ceiling and any other EVO that was in his way with one giant metal fist.

He couldn't worry anymore about the EVOs running about town. Cain was out for his blood –probably saw this as an opportunity of a lifetime to get rid of Rex.

He landed right on the front hood of the jeep, smashing it and jumping away right before it blew up.

Cain was quick to ditch the vehicle so he wasn't caught in the explosion. He was equally quick on the draw, firing off at Rex with an automatic rifle. But Rex wasn't about to let that happen.

Rex brought out his shield in time to block the bullets.

"Stop this, Cain!" Rex hollered, head still pounding with intense pain, "Look around you, the EVOs are getting away! You gotta stop them, instead of fighting me."

Cain laughed in mirth and waved a hand.

"Save your goodbyes," Rex seethed and shot his whip to Cain's wrist.

But before he could shock him, Rex was slammed from his back, flying forwards and landing right at Cain's feet.

Rex groaned and tried to push his aching body up. Six was still unconscious, lying a few feet from him.

Then vice-like grips on his arms and calf wrenched him to his knees and he was forced to obey because the grips were sharp and cut him, digging into his flesh and drawing blood. Rex bit back a cry as he angrily glared at Cain.

"Look again, Rex, they're going to help me get you. You're the one I want. The prize that will set me free."

"You're despicable –I don't think you'll ever be free from your hatred of EVOs."

Then he balled his eyes in stunned horror to realize the Cain was right. Besides the EVOs holding Rex down, the others had come up to surround them, but had stopped their assault, losing their aggressive behavior.

At the crook of Cain's finger, one of the EVOs came forwards and raised a long limb that looked like a sabre. It held its limb above its shoulders, poised in position ready to slice right down Rex's neck.

"Impossible," Rex rasped, mind spinning in confusion, "How are you doing this?"

Cain grinned evilly.

"With the power of my mind, to control those nanites, just like you do, freak."

Rex struggled violently, not caring how deep he was cut at his arms or calf. More EVOs rushed over to hold him down.

He wrenched deep inside for a power surge, or nanite boost –anything to beef him up with a nanite construct to smash his way out of this, but he found he couldn't.

Rex was thoroughly exhausted, and not just that –his mind was in such chaos since the guests turned EVO that he could barely get a proper hold on his nanites.

He despaired while he watched Cain give the hand signal.

Rex couldn't breathe….

Five seconds passed but the slicing death never came.

"C'mon, kill him, you freak! What are you waiting for?" Cain yelled and hit the EVO that was supposed to execute Rex, with the back of his rifle.

The EVO grunted, then turned round and yanked Cain's rifle away, making growling noises and baring its teeth.

The other EVOs that stood motionless on guard in a circle around them started stirring slowly like they were out of a trance.

Rex felt the EVOs that were holding him down loosen their hold and took the chance immediately. He pushed them off him, finding that it was a lot easier than he imagined.

Cain cursed aloud and pulled out another rifle that he had slung over his back.

"Alright freaks, you can all go down with him!"

But before Cain could shoot, another EVO jumped right in front of him and gripped the barrel, crushing it with its pincher-like claws.

"Troops, come in now. The situation is as I have suspected. You hear me? Now!" Cain yelled into his communicator as he backed away from the EVOs that steadily advanced towards him.

"Stay back, you hear me? Back!" Cain ordered the EVOs, looking frustrated, then he turned on his heel and ran. All the EVOs gave chase, crying monstrous sounds of fury.

Rex remained frozen, taking in the scene in utter bafflement. He couldn't comprehend why the EVOs suddenly turned on Cain, or why they were even at his command in the first place.

 _"_ _They won't listen to him. My mind is stronger."_

Rex jolted and spun around, staring around in anxiousness. The voice came out from nowhere, but was incredibly loud and overwhelming in his head.

"Where are you? Who are you?"

 _"_ _I am close. You must come. Run before Deceiver gets you."_

Again, the words pounded inside his brain, echoing like it was spoken inside his mind. Then Rex realized that the speaker was inside his mind, talking to him telepathically.

"You are NoFace, aren't you? Why should I listen to you? Why are you helping me?"

 _"_ _No time! More comes!"_

Rex gave a cry and cupped the sides of his head at the powerful hiss that hurt his brain.

A few jeeps turned in from the corner, racing at top speeds towards Cain, who quickly jumped aboard.

 _Damn that sneaky bastard!_ Rex mentally cursed to himself when he saw a couple of reporters and camera crew –those who weren't invited to Yefim's luncheon –following behind Cain's troops. Cain must have already planted those people close by and set the stage, calling them out at this moment to make it look like Rex was going rouge. He could just imagine Cain twisting the truth and turning this to his favor.

The EVOs continued charging, going head to head with the troop's rain of firepower.

One of the jeeps broke through the EVO barricade and charged towards Rex.

 _"_ _Quickly! Come to me!"_

"I don't even know where the hell are you!" Rex cried aloud, flinching. He slung Six over his shoulder again and ran from the jeep, not sure where he was heading to, as long as it was away from the incoming rain of bullets. Then he noticed there was something tingling within his legs and Rex was vaguely aware that his legs were carrying him in a direction that he hadn't thought of going.

 _"_ _Faster!"_

Rex gritted his teeth and ignored the strange sensation. He focused on pushing himself to run as fast as he could. The roar of the jeep that grew increasingly loud worried him. Bullets raced alongside him and at his heel, too close for comfort. He wasn't going to outrun the vehicle, nor their gunfires.

So he squeezed every drop of power he could get from his miserable nanites to charge up a pair of giant boots, then ran by leaps and bounds. His body screamed, then screamed more intensely when something impacted his giant nanite legs –probably a missile from a bazooka.

His nanite construct crumbled away to dust and he fell over ten feet, crashing heavily onto the ground. Good thing he was able to cushion Six's fall with his body and now he gingerly rolled him off.

The rumble of the ground told him that the jeep was fast approaching. But Rex was too weak to move. He groaned, sure that he hadn't ached so badly in such a long time. He couldn't even lift his head, face resting sideways on the road. The ground kept tilting this way and that, refusing to keep to a still angle, even though he was already unmoving.

The jeep came to a halt and he could hear doors opening and slamming and heavy footsteps racing towards him.

"Is he dead?"

"No, goodness, he's an EVO. They're hard to kill."

"So what now? We kill him?"

"Are you crazy? He's a world famous hero! The one who can cure EVOs."

"Yea, but didn't Cain say he saw Rex turning everyone at Yefim's place EVO?"

"I know, but does that mean we just put him away?"

"Well duh, if he'd gone rouge, he's just like the rest of the regular EVOs –brainless, out of control and dangerous. Very, very, dangerous."

As the conversations floated above him, Rex wanted to laugh at the ridiculous things they were saying, except that he didn't have the strength to. He kept his eyes shut, pretending to be unconscious while he rested a bit, gathering his damaged nanites and repairing them, so that he would have just enough to build his Slyder and zip himself out of there.

 _"_ _What are you doing? Get up!"_

Rex ignored the voice in his head.

"C'mon, let's just tie him up. He might be useful. I heard Cain saying he has this facility somewhere that he sends those captured EVO to for study. Maybe they can come up with a breakthrough that Providence couldn't."

Rex's senses spiked at those words. But before he could hear more, shouts erupted along with rapid gunfire.

Rex burst his eyes open and swung a leg out from under the nearest guy, kicking his legs and making him fall backwards.

Rex had trouble believing what he was seeing –NoFace crushed all their weapons and drove punches and kicks into the soldiers' gut –even though he already had a feeling that the telepathic EVO would come to his aid.

"Come! We must go!" NoFace hissed and waved for Rex to follow.

"Wait! Six!" Rex exclaimed whilst NoFace started bounding away.

Rex grunted as he picked Six up and nearly staggered.

NoFace suddenly returned to his side, towering three heads over him, making a guttural noise of disapproval at the back of his throat.

"You are doing worse than before if this weight is too much for you."

Then NoFace took Six from Rex and sprinted off with ease with Six lying in his arms. Rex grunted in annoyance and followed after, nanites repaired enough to form his hover board.

NoFace sprinted quickly on four legs, so fast that Rex struggled to catch up. He led them back into Kiev, deep inside, where tons of rumble, dilapidated buildings and wild foliage remained lying around, looking more like the old Bug Jar that Rex knew.

The moment NoFace stopped and put Six down, Rex dropped his hover board and stumbled to his knees, bracing his upper body with his palms flat on the ground. He panted heavily, exhausted beyond belief.

He knew his nanite count must be extremely low by now, and pondered why Holiday hadn't called to check in. She usually kept an eye on his biometrics or had another Scientist keep watch whenever he was on mission. Maybe they were too busy with something. In any case, this wasn't something that Holiday could solve.

"You have become weaker than I remembered."

Rex shot NoFace a deadly glare, but couldn't give a comeback as he was still catching his breath.

"Why?"

With the Omega-1 inside him, Rex should be able to continually generate new nanites and keep them up to strength –theoretically, of course. But when it came down to reality, Rex's ability was largely influenced by his state of mind and emotions. And right now, he was feeling fragile like glass.

"You wouldn't understand it even if I had told you," Rex said glumly, then sat back on his bum.

"Then I will ask the _Inside_ to tell me."

As soon as NoFace said that, Rex could feel that prickle under his skin and within his bones –similar to the tingling sensation he thought he had felt earlier.

"Hey, what the hell are you trying to do?" Rex bolted from the ground and took up a defensive pose, glaring at NoFace.

Even as he asked that, Rex had an inkling of what NoFace was doing. He could feel it –tendrils of fleeting touches all over him, weaving through every inch of his body to every single nanite. Rex trembled, never feeling so exposed before. It was like he was stripped bare, lying completely naked, with his mind and soul laid in plain sight.

Then the ghostly touches left him.

Rex gasped, breathless, falling to his knees.

He squeezed his eyes shut to keep himself calm, to steady his breathing. If he had the energy to be angry, he might have lashed out at NoFace for intruding. Yet at the same time, he couldn't stay mad, because he recognized that NoFace was communicating with his nanites, similar to the way Rex had always done whenever he tried to cure EVOs.

It was just that this was the first time that Rex had someone else try to talk to his.

"You are very receptive," NoFace said pointedly in an amused tone, head tilting, "If I had noticed before, you might have been mine."

Rex felt shivers go down his spine, not liking the sound of it. He got up again and warily paced sideways, giving NoFace the eagle eye.

"So what do you mean? That you'll try to mind control me? Like you do to the other EVOs?"

NoFace shook his head.

"No, you are too strong willed. Your mind will fight your body. The others have weaker controls, so they fall to The Deceiver's control."

"You mean Hunter Cain? He's The Deceiver?" Rex asked, trying to make sense of it all, "Well, how are you doing any different from him? You're mind controlling them like he does."

NoFace shook his head.

"I do not control them. I free them. I speak to them, befriend them."

At his words, EVOs started coming up, appearing amongst the chunks of debris, giving him the feeling that they were watching him, studying him.

Rex swallowed hard.

"That's reassuring," Rex said dryly and waved a hand around them, "So are they trying to decide if I'm friend or foe?"

NoFace let out a throaty laugh, making Rex feel as though the world has turned upside down. He didn't think that NoFace was capable of laughing.

"I used to envy you as the Grower of Machines. I turned my envy to hate and influenced my fellow brethren. But now I know –we know –you are also Master of the Insides, the Provider of the Cure. You, are friend."

* * *

It was very, very strange. Super strange –to have EVOs pacing up and down an old water ditch, fetching buckets of water to have one of them heating it with its flaming breath, then offering it to Rex.

Rex felt his face split as he forced a smile of thanks.

Stranger still, was Rex dunking the sleeve he'd ripped off his tee into the warm water and sponging Six's feverish skin.

Rex, taking care of Six –he never thought he'd live to see the day,

Unfortunately, the electric shock had got Six worse than he thought. Or it could have worsened Six's body since *Six had taken electric damage twice before –once while saving Beverly and the other, Rex. Six had been unconscious for two says straight and ran into a fever.

He'd contemplated calling for back up, to send Six back for medical aid, but he remembered Six telling him that air security in Ukraine was tight, and he didn't want to risk Cain spotting their position.

Rex cursed his brashness again, for not thinking before he shocked Six along with the EVO. How could he assume that Six was infallible? Six was the toughest guy he knows, but still only human.

And as for the EVOs that surrounded them, well, Rex was sure that though none of them retained their human consciousness, they were unexpectedly docile and friendly. In the last two days, they have offered him fruits and various raw greens, pilling them in a corner like a tribal tribune of some sort.

Rex was suspicious and didn't dare touch the food at first, even as NoFace pointedly said that it was safe to eat. Eventually, his growling stomach got the better of him, and he stuffed his face, to which NoFace laughed, which was also very weird.

Rex could never have imagined that NoFace and him would one day form a truce and be kept under his safe watch. NoFace seemed to have created a safe haven of sorts for these motley bunch of EVOs and acted as their leader, their guide and their savior. They were very affectionate towards him, often crowding him whenever he appears, begging for him to pet them.

It was sort of endearing, and Rex's initial envy was put to rest when a few of the EVOs started showing favor towards him, which actually put him off at first because he couldn't get used to it.

In fact, one of them, a grubby looking, oversized maggot about the size of a dog, that had soft, jelly like tentacles protruding all over it, downright gave him the hibbie jibbies. Rex woke up the second morning to find it snuggling against his side, sending him breaking out in goose bumps and yelling aloud in shock.

For reasons he couldn't phantom, it kept trying to stick close to him and he spent a good portion of the day trying to avoid touching its gross, squishy-like body. But in between trying to dodge it whilst taking care of Six, Rex eventually found it easier to just let the critter rub itself against his leg so he could focus on checking Six's vitals and what not.

A few others were similarly attached and Rex freaked, finding it hard to keep calm when scary looking appendages or sharp teeth or claws were siding up close to him. He kept imagining that this was just an act to get him to relax so that they could pounce and gobble him when he was unguarded.

But by now, Rex had sort of accustomed himself to it, losing the shivers that used to keeping running through him every time that one of the EVOs touched him.

When Six's watch beeped, Rex jumped and cursed for the unlucky timing.

He briskly removed the watch from Six's wrist and jogged away from the company of EVOs before hitting the receive button.

"Yo White Knight," Rex forced a cherry note, "You're up early."

"Your report is late," White Knight stated crossly, white brows angled downwards, "Where's Six?"

"Taking a nap, he's beat," Rex struggled to keep his tone steady.

White Knight gave him a suspicious look.

"Then how's your progress there?"

"In g-good swing," Rex stammered, and received an even more severe frown.

But instead of questioning further like Rex thought he would, White Knight suddenly glanced off to the side.

"Holiday?" Rex heard White Knight say, "What is so important? What about the cows? Can't it wait? Fine."

White Knight faced Rex and gave a stern glare.

"I want an update tonight. Got it?"

Then the screen went blank.

Rex gave a sigh of relief. Looks like White Knight hadn't known about the press members turning EVO, which means Cain hadn't released the tapes yet.

Cain had another one up on them. NoFace had explained to Rex how the EVO relapse started happening. From there, Rex realized that Cain must have somehow managed to inject some nanite activating formula into those press members and was close enough in the vicinity to activate them. Leveraging on those reporters' obsession with filming and gathering news, Cain then deliberately chose that time to activate the nanites inside the reporters, making it look like Rex was the one causing it.

Not to mention, Cain had the 'bandwagon' coming in at the moment when he lost control over the EVOs, so those reporters had recorded the EVOs defending Rex and attacking Cain. With those footages, Cain could frame Rex and Providence and bring their reputation down. Any viewer watching such a situation would definitely assume that Rex possessed some unorthodox power to turn people EVO and control them.

Rex racked his head for ideas. Six was usually the one who'd come up with the complex, meticulous plans for sticky situations like this.

 _What should I do?_

For starters, Rex knows for sure that Six would want him to continue the mission. He has checked his vitals hourly –besides his raised temperatures, his breathing and pulse counts per minute were normal. He has also checked for symptoms of internal bleeding in the head and various other important signs –thing he had picked up from Holiday over the years –but found Six was alright.

But god damn it, why wouldn't he wake?

 _What would Six do?_

"We need those tapes, pronto," Rex said aloud to himself in answer.

"It is not important."

Rex jumped and spun around, frowning at NoFace.

"You seriously gotta stop doing that."

NoFace was deadly quiet when he moved, and frequently turned up behind Rex without him knowing, surprising him.

"Anyway, like I was saying, Cain has set us up real good. I have to stop him from spreading those videos across the world. Providence is going to be in big shit if it happens."

"It is not important," NoFace repeated, annoying Rex.

"Were you even listening to me?"

Rex folded his arms across his chest.

NoFace pointed to his head.

"More lies will come. Unless you destroy this."

"Right, the controller, but how do you suggest we do it?"

Rex threw his arms in exasperation, growing more frustrated at NoFace's silence.

They could do it by Rex's usual way –hitting Cain hard and fast. Once Rex could destroy the device that NoFace claims Cain wore by the side of his head, it would break the connection with the nanites in those EVOs, freeing them from his control. Without the interference, Rex would probably also be able to cure them.

But Rex had learnt a thing or two over the years and was forced to rethink his strategies. If he did that, the public would still never know what happened since they couldn't be there to witness it. They might just assume that it was another of Rex's unholy powers and accuse Rex of framing Cain to get off the hook.

So if he was going to take Cain down, he had to do it playing by Cain's methods.

Suddenly, he had a flash in the pan.

"Hey, NoFace, do you still have the camcorder that you snatched from me?"

NoFace tilted his head like he was puzzled, then vomited out the device from the side of his torso.

"Eww," Rex lamented and gingerly picked up the gadget that had a bit of muck on it.

He gingerly cleaned it with his shirt then checked to see if it was working.

"Yes! It still works," Rex exclaimed and pumped a fist. Then he looked up and down NoFace, waggling his brows.

"Now, I've a plan, and if you're up for it, I will need you in your human form."

NoFace seemed disgruntled, but changed anyway, turning into the lanky guy Rex saw the other day.

Rex then made him change out of his dirty shirt, and wear Six's white one instead. He also fished out a tiny pouch from inside his jacket pocket, shaking it till a fake moustache and beard fell out.

Nikolay frowned and gave Rex a questioning look.

"Just a little handy disguise. *Helped me out of a tight spot before, so I always carry along a little something in case I need a quick disguise."

"How? What kind of tight spot?"

"Well," Rex paused, surprised that Nikolay would be curious to know, "I'd to disguise myself once while we were on the run protecting this guy. It was hilarious really, because I dressed up like Indiana Jones and my best friend dressed up like a woman, and he's a guy."

Nikolay tilted his head and looks lost.

"I do not see what is funny about that."

Rex opened his mouth to retort, then shut it, shaking his head. There was no way someone with Nikolay's conversation level, would get the joke.

Rex just ignored Nikolay's question and helped to stick the moustache on the other's face. Then he nodded to himself, satisfied.

"Now, I will need you to get a few magnetic parts from our jet, and connect it around billboards and wire cables around town," Rex instructed and hooked Six's communicator over Nikolay's ear, "And I'll walk you through it, think you can manage?"

Nikolay nodded.

"And one more thing, I need you to find your dad and talk to him. Get him to run a quiet investigation on the troops he had attached to Cain –find out if Cain did anything to the members of the press during the security clearance when they arrived.

* * *

The pale man wore a crazed, half smile, whites blindingly bright against the perpetual darkness of his hair that he has cloaked himself in.

"Hmm, what an extraordinary show," he drawled in an uncharacteristic upbeat manner after watching the recordings, courtesy of another of his enslaved humans. "It was a good idea to rope in Cain after all –he's an astoundingly resourceful and wily fellow, don't you agree, my dear?"

"As you say, Master," the woman replied nonchalantly, even if she felt anxious and disgusted with what she had seen.

It was a rhetorical question after all –this selfish, malicious man cared naught of what anyone else thought. There was no room for her to make any other comment besides agreeing with him.

"Though it is certainly disappointing to have lost Rex. But ordinary humans like Cain, can only do so much. I will have to count on you again, my dear, to locate him and give Cain exact coordinates."

She tensed, feeling cold chills under her skin at the asserting tone thrown a few feet over her shoulders. Seated close to his feet, she was his eyes over the ignorant world below. For years she had been the crucial instrument, giving him the upper hand in planning his vicious ploys. For years, she had been the utmost obedient, the loyal, unquestioning servant.

But sometimes, just sometimes, she secretly rebels, her loyalties veering off.

"I will if I could. But it is as with NoFace, as I had said, the interference remains," she lies in a calm, neutral tone.

The pale one sighs, exasperated, and combs back the sides of his long, black hair.

"Yes, yes, of course, I remember, that damn energy shield made by Providence. Static remnants hinders your ability to open windows in Kiev," he reminded himself aloud.

The spherical containment that had once enclosed Kiev had long been deactivated. But theoretically, it was possible for trillions of unbounded energy units to remain dispersed over the area, making the space within Kiev too unstable to hold a portal.

As a former scientist, her master had deducted that, so he was surprisingly calm when she banked on that reasoning as an excuse for not being able to track NoFace inside Kiev. It wasn't a complete lie, though she could probably do so, if she tried hard enough.

But she didn't want her master to know that.

Instead, she cast windows in the town nearest to Kiev where Cain mainly operates, which was how they could see the video on playback inside his personal office. Besides this, her master relies on a secret, terrifying device imbedded inside the human sacrifice – Cain – to see everything through his eyes.

The same goes for the other two enslaved scientists.

"Hmph, I suppose at this point, we can hardly depend on Cain anymore. The curtain will fall on that play soon enough now that the meddlesome duo have stepped in," her master lamented, sounding dull and unhappy again.

"I hope for your sakes, Doctors, that your research is coming to fruition soon."

He gave warning stares at the two scientists through two separate windows. One, was recently sent back to their ground base, to continue experiments on those unfortunate humans turned into EVOs by Cain. The other, remained in the laboratory, here in their secret base.

While Doctor Fell wrung his hands like a nervous mouse, Doctor Moses spoke for them, looking confident.

"Worry not," Doctor Moses assured, cupping his hands in front of him, grinning from ear to ear, "Your patience will soon be rewarded. The test subjects that Cain had captured were more than enough for us to perform several key permutations of nanite coding. We are making progress with the results."

Her master's snarl softened, though his scowl remained.

"Hmph, I shall see the recordings of those EVOs' performance later and decide that for myself."

 _Such a revolting thing,_ she thought inwardly, knowing exactly what her master meant. It sickens her to the core to see such cruelty played out, but then again, there was once, years ago, when she was not averse to such barbaric acts either.

Once, she had been equally selfish and cruel like her master.

Strange, how she sees things so differently now.

Perhaps it was because she was made to keep watch on the world below, tirelessly, for years. Because of it, she has seen so many things – things that made her heart sing and cry, that gave her a different view of life that she had never before.

Seeing so much, made her wish for better things – to be more than just a servant tied to a man with an abominable desire.

But as she was now, she could not be what she so desired. To attain that, she has to bound herself to this master, even if it means sharing the devil's skin with him.

Perhaps after all, this meant that she was still as selfish as she was before.

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Six had taken electric damage twice before –once while saving Beverly and the other, Rex. :

Recap 'A Family Holiday' and 'Six Minus Six' in season two.

*Helped me out of a tight spot before. :

"I'd to disguise myself once while we were on the run :

I'm referring to the episode 'Deadzone'.


	8. Hitting back

**Chapter Eight: Hitting back**

(In Kiev. Rex devises a plan to expose the lies and make right the wrongs.)

* * *

Nikolay did excellent legwork. After all, he lived here and knew the town like the back of his hand. And he was quick and silent, able to move through the town undetected, until he was caught and captured by Cain's troops.

But everything was still in position.

Including Rex, gasping for his breath as Cain strangled him.

Well, actually, that part wasn't exactly in the plan.

Rex had burst into the security bunkers where Cain and the other troops would be. Their main operating base was a little way off the city, a foreboding single storied warehouse large enough to bunk a light tank.

There were stacks of storage crates lined fairly neatly alongside all walls, with a couple of work desks filed in the far corner. There were only a dozen men, including Cain, and they were all taken by surprise.

Rex pulled out his big guns and did sufficient damage before pretending to slip up, letting Cain get the upper hand. Unfortunately, Rex had not counted on Cain having a weapon so lethal that it could actually kill him –Cain had used it on Rex a minute ago and it hurt like the Reaper had raked its scythe through Rex's every nerve.

Cain chortled, looking entertained by Rex's apparent idiocy.

"Well, well, well, the all-powerful Generator Rex, seems like you're still lacking in brains. Think you could take us all on, alone? Well, I've got newsflash for you."

Cain unceremoniously dropped him and touched the lethal staff to his shoulder, sending him another violent jolt. Rex writhed in pain but not from the shock since he could withstand high voltages.

"I've got a nanite disrupter, so you can kiss your ass goodbye."

Cain jolted Rex again and he screamed, feeling like every fiber of his body was being ripped to shreds.

"C'mon, Cain, that's enough. He's tortured a fair bit," one of the security officers persuaded.

Cain grunted and brutally kicked Rex a few times. Rex groaned in pain and laid in a crumpled ball, body so wounded and nanites so damaged that Rex was sure he'd be sore and bruised for days.

"Oh, I'm not through with him yet."

Cain brought the staff to Rex again but one of the soldiers stopped him.

"That's enough. He's beat up. He won't be able to fight back. Let's just put him in a cage and let Yefim decide what to do with him."

"Are you kiddin?" Cain exclaimed in ire, "Yefim's the idiot who called him here in the first place. He trusts that no good Providence. But you saw what happened that other day, didn't ya? The EVOs were under his control, defending him, saving him too. Didn't I warn you it would happen?"

"Yea, but it just doesn't make any sense. Why would Rex do all that? I've heard all the good he has done."

"Listen you –" Cain grabbed that guy by the scruff of his collar and gave a rude shake, "Why don't you grow a spine and wake up."

"Why don't you drop your quarrels and watch the door?" Rex spluttered out, chest still winded and body still hurting.

He forced a winning smile as a horde of EVOs burst in on cue, through the hole that Rex had made earlier at the steel doors.

Cain and the troops cried shouts of fury and curses and started shooting at the swarm. Rex languidly crawled away, but Cain caught his foot.

"Oh no you don't! You're mine –I still need you! The –"

Then Cain's bellows were muffled by an EVO that jumped over him and suffocated his face. Rex manically grinned to himself on that sight, then returned to a somber mood.

 _C'mon, guys, hurry! Get those troops out,_ Rex begged silently, hopping that those EVOs could somehow understand him, or at least remember to follow the plan like NoFace had earlier instructed, before Cain overpowers their mind with his controller.

Rex counted off the troops as they were dragged out the bunker, screaming for their dear life. One by one, they were gone, until Cain was the only guy left. The other dozen remaining EVOs darted around, restless and weary, acting twitchy, no doubt starting to become confused since Cain's mind control device was releasing electro waves, which disrupted the telepathic bonds that NoFace had formed with them earlier. At an EVO's ear-splitting squeal of pain, Rex pushed himself up and snatched the nanite disruptor from Cain's hand before he killed the EVO clinging on his head.

"Tell me where you kept NoFace. I know you caught him a few hours earlier because I lost radio contact with him."

Cain let out a mad laugh.

"C'mon, Cain, give up," Rex taunted in a scratchy voice from all that earlier screaming, "It's just you and my EVO army. What can you do? Raise a new one?"

"You mean, my EVO army," Cain clarified and gave a smug grin whilst the EVOs broke out into spasms that were more violent.

Then they stilled for a few seconds before advancing towards Rex, baring menacing fangs and claws at him. As expected, the switch had flipped. Rex swallowed hard and forced himself to remain calm as he surveyed the circle that had him surrounded.

"You're taking back control over them, aren't you?" Rex deadpanned, "How?"

Cain let out a cackle.

"Didn't NoFace tell you this during your little co-operation? Then I guess he must still hate you as much as before then. He can only disrupt the signals from this device-"

Cain turned a little sideways and tapped a small black contraption stuck to the side of his head, behind his ears.

"-if he is within range. Otherwise my device will overpower his telepathic abilities."

"Right, so that's why you were desperate to get rid of him. Since discovering he was immune to you and could break your hold on the other EVOs, you were worried he would hinder your plans."

"You're catching on, boy."

Cain turned his back and went off to the lockers at the far wall. He opened one of them and took something out.

"So what's your plan? World domination? Coming from a guy who hates EVOs, I'm surprised you are making them your minions."

Cain gave a bark of laughter as he returned, holding an injection gun.

"You gotta catch on faster, Rex. It's humans being used by EVOs now. I'm just joining the winning team."

"You are not making any sense –including that injection gun. Giving me a medical jab?"

Cain grinned.

"Let's just say, it's a little concoction that will make you more obedient. It contains millions of nanite controllers that will attach to your nanites, and link you with the main controller that I own."

"So that's how you activated the nanites in the townsfolk and those media guys who came down here for the international press conference. You were the one who turned them in EVOs."

"Yes, and you'll be the prize in my possession."

"Does this mean I'll be your slave forever?"

"Unless you are far away enough to be out of range. But don't worry, Rex, I'll keep you close by," Cain said gruffly and took the last step towards Rex.

"Oh, you'll be close to him, alright, locked inside Providence prison. And this time, Cain, I'll make sure you serve a life-long sentence," Yefim barked as he entered through the double doors that were half torn from the hinges –the aftermath of Rex's brutal barge-in. Yefim was followed by three dozen troops who filed into the hall.

"Statesman Yefim, what a surprise visit. I'm afraid you've confused me with your words."

"Well, you're the one who had me baffled with the EVO relapses and had us all fooled. But now we know, everything was your doing!" Yefim berated as he marched right up to Cain with a few officers at his heel.

"I'm afraid I don't' –"

Cain held back his tongue as Yefim pulled out his phone and played a video, showing both Rex and Cain reenacting their last several lines of conversation as if they were actors filmed in a thriller.

Cain's eyes balled in realization at the horrid evidence staring right at his face. Busted, he shot a death glare at Rex, eyes flickering to the tiny camera in the shape of a glossy bob hanging from Rex's neck that he thought was just a pendant.

"You! You've been filming!" Cain growled frustrated and lunged for Rex but the other soldiers quickly held him back, wrenching his arms up against his back.

It was Rex's turn to give a smug grin.

"And broadcasting it live to every billboard and TV station in town –a trick I learnt from you. I would've sent it worldwide too, but I didn't have enough resources."

Cain let out a strangled growl then said between clenched teeth, "Well, you may have busted me, but you'll have to deal with these EVOs here first before arresting me!"

Several seconds passed with Cain's face scrunched up in furious concentration as he likely tried to order the EVOs to counterattack. The agitated EVOs however, suddenly calmed like a soothing wave have washed down on them, and remained motionless. Rex snickered when Cain's pissed face turned into anguish upon realization that his commands were not taking effect.

"They won't listen to you if NoFace is close by, right?"

Cain's eyes looked like they were going to pop out their sockets as he stared straight ahead at NoFace who stood by the door. A crowd of nosy reporters had also appeared without Cain's earlier notice, jostling behind NoFace and a barrier of armed security troops, cameras rolling and flashing away. Rex wasn't surprised how quickly the media crew showed up –they were essentially like hungry vultures always perched on the ready to swoop at juicy morsels of news.

"Humph! Men, take this scum away, we'll keep him in custody till Providence troops take him off us," Yefim ordered.

"No! He's mine!" NoFace growled in a threatening tone and sprinted across in a flash, grasping Cain's thick neck with his big, bony, deformed hands.

"Deceiver. Murderer. I will have you," NoFace seethed, reminding Rex that for however much the EVO seemed to have softened, he still retained his vehement streak.

Yefim's troops aimed their firearms at NoFace, all tensed and ready to fire.

Gasps and shouts rippled across from the media crew gathered outside, adding to the tension.

"No! Niko –I mean NoFace, please, you can't," Yefim threw a hand on NoFace's long, muscular arms, "You have to leave it to Providence. This is their jurisdiction."

NoFace ignored him, tightening his grip and causing Cain's eyes to roll to the back of his head.

"Why? Why let him live? He should die for his sins, his crimes."

"Because death would be too easy for him," Rex mused aloud, folding his arms along his chest, "You remember don't you, how it was like to be imprisoned. And forever is, a long time."

NoFace pointedly turned his face to Rex and he could see all the muscles and veins at his neck were tensed and bulging in agitation. At the end, NoFace agreed with Rex and he released Cain, who coughed raggedly and took huge gasps of air like a fish out of water.

Yefim gave a sigh of relief then returned the communicator that NoFace had passed to him three days back on Rex's instructions, whilst also giving Rex a firm handshake at the same time.

"I can't thank you enough for the help you have given."

"Thank you, Sir, for taking the gamble and trusting my words –our words."

Three days back, Rex had sent NoFace to covertly hand Yefim the communicator so that Rex could share his plan. Rex requested Yefim to investigate if Cain did anything fishy to the press members who attended the conference. Rex told Yefim about his crazy plan to deliberately let NoFace be caught by the security troops as a front –unbeknownst to Cain, NoFace would later be released on Yefim's secret orders, so that he could get close to the bunkers and disrupt the hold of Cain's controller on the EVOs.

It was a damn crazy idea –but if they played their cards right, they could trap Cain in his own game –and thank god, the plan was a success.

Yefim gave a smile of relief.

"It was a gamble worth taking, since you've brought concrete evidence against Cain," then he lowered his voice, "So I should be the one to thank you, for clearing my son's name."

Then Yefim gave NoFace only the briefest of nods before he exited the bunker with half the media following him. NoFace tensed as the other half of the crowd shoved against the barricade of security troops, firing and shouting questions and shoving microphones and recorders above the soldiers' arms.

"Excuse me, coming through, excuse me."

Rex caught that familiar voice amongst the chorus of questions.

"Six!" Rex yelled and raced out to meet him, "I'm glad you're alright!"

The crowd had parted for a tall, puffy looking EVO that had two stilts for legs.

Rex laughed when he saw Six sitting on its fluffy round body. He couldn't decide which was more comical –the EVO or Six riding on something that looked like a ridiculous, overgrown cotton-ball ostrich.

"Can I assume that you've just saved the day?" Six asked in a bemused manner.

"In summary, yes," Rex announced proudly, then pointed with a backward thumb at NoFace, who had the other EVOs gathered around him like he was their idol, "But I've had help."

Six pushed his sunglasses up his nose.

"Good, but you'll need to explain further. Because when I woke up to report in to White Knight, he lambasted us, saying that we have comprised Providence. He showed me the news feed of the incident at Yefim's luncheon. It would appear that Cain had taken the tapes of those camera crew and spread the videos to other news stations."

Rex smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck.

"Well, that's probably because he hasn't watched the latest news update. I think the stunt I just pulled will only show up in tonight's news. After that, White Knight will surely have to cut us some slack."

"Hopefully," Six nodded, "And you'll have to explain why I woke up to find five EVOs trying to babysit me."

Rex guffawed.

"Let's hit the pub again and you can buy me another gin. It's gonna be a long story."

Rex thought to invite NoFace along, but he turned round in time to see NoFace busting a hole through the wall on the opposite end, before scuttling out with the rest of the EVOs as if they were terrified of the reporters who were screaming his name and pushing against the soldiers.

Six raised a brow at their epic retreat, just as the crowd stampeded down the side of the bunker in chase.

Rex couldn't help but hug his sides and laugh till his tummy hurt.

* * *

Rex filled Six in with all the happenings and findings that he had missed since he passed out.

NoFace had shared a bit of his past with Rex and how he relapsed, which was a pain to make sense of because he spoke in broken sentences. Thankfully, Rex managed to piece together enough to get a rough glimpse of how Cain started the EVO relapse.

Like what Yefim had told them, NoFace admitted that he never got used to his life in the town, instead, preferred to hang around Kiev with his old EVO buddies. Somehow many of them were able to recognize each other and they remained close because they shared the same feeling of isolation, even if they were living amongst people as cured humans.

It was during one of their meetings in Kiev, near the outskirts, when Cain rode in on a jeep and shot them with darts. NoFace was horrified to find his buddies suddenly turning EVO and was confused when they attacked him. Luckily, NoFace was able to subconsciously hold them off with his mind whilst he escaped, still retaining in his human form.

Rex surmised that NoFace didn't transform or yield to Cain's command, because he had such strong telepathic control over his nanites. But that didn't mean that he was unaffected. The serum did activate his nanites, but NoFace was somehow able to control his EVO transformation, something similar to Rex.

NoFace didn't realize that his nanites had been activated, until Cain showed up in town with dead EVOs in tow. NoFace had accompanied Yefim to see the commotion, and in a state of panic and distress at seeing the death of his friends, he transformed right in middle of the public square, exchanged a few blows with Cain, before fleeing. NoFace only figured out later, that Cain had injected them with some sort of nanite controlling serum –or in NoFace's words, a formula that controlled the 'Insides.' Since then, he avoided Cain whilst sneaking around to save other EVOs wherever he could, gathering them to a safe place.

Once Rex learnt how Cain's nanite controlling powers worked, he had a nagging suspicion on how Cain was able to inject all of the press members with the serum. So three days back, he sent a disguised NoFace in his human form –Nikolay – to seek Yefim's help to run an investigation into this.

While Yefim ran investigations, Nikolay went back to the jet to get the components that Rex instructed. With it, Rex devised new gadgets and rerouted the systems so that it could hack into broadcast programs, such as electronic billboards, TV stations and the town's own satellite station. Over the next two days, Nikolay quickly and stealthily installed the devices into billboard circuits, broadcast wirings and the like.

Meanwhile, through Yefim's secret investigations, he found out from the support troops he'd provided Cain, that right before the international press conference, Cain had subjected all the press members to a jab he claimed was mandatory resistance against turning EVO.

From there, Yefim was able to quickly put two and two together. It became obvious that the lapse in Providence communication was also caused by Cain. Yefim contacted Rex as soon as he'd pieced the puzzle, raging over the communicators about how he had been made a fool.

It was likely that Cain had taken out the Providence squadron stationed in Kiev months before, turning them EVO. Then he made those false reports and intercom replies whenever HQ checked in, while feeding stories to Yefim that Providence had vacated the premise, leaving them high and dry.

Being a prudent man, Yefim had tried to contact Providence HQ several times, only to find that he couldn't because the transmissions were jammed, no thanks to Cain. Not knowing that Cain was the perpetrator then, Yefim appointed Cain to act as bailiff to deal with the EVO relapse situation as he was the only man capable enough to put the EVO crisis under control. Unfortunately, that gave Cain better leverage and power to execute his plot.

As bailiff, Cain had access to and could by-pass many security channels.

Cain had obtained security passcodes and radio frequencies for all broadcast channels in town, which was how he was able to jam the signal every time that Yefim tried to contact Providence. It wasn't until Yefim sent tapes to Russia's biggest broadcast network did their local news reach Providence, and contact could be made through the main government office.

Cain was also the one who received incoming medical supplies for 'security clearance' and took the chance to contaminate medical vaccines with the serum. So all those people who walked into clinics thinking they were getting a flu shot, were actually given a dose of the serum.

This allowed Cain to activate the serum and turn the inflicted people EVO as and when he wanted, so long as he was in the vicinity. This explained his nightly patrols – people would still hear the EVOs' cries and crashing sounds of a fight, but it would be too dark for them to properly see when Cain has them tamed and caged and sent off for shipment.

In this way, Cain continued his hero charade while he spread the serum and caught and killed more EVOs.

Yefim's Intel shed light on how Cain carried out his devious scheme, putting all the pieces of puzzle into place. Learning that, Rex got even more disgusted and maddened by Cain's cunning and devious nature. His determination to expose Cain and bring him down for good, grew.

In irony, brushing shoulders with Cain forced Rex to play it smart, or rather, play it by Cain's methods. Everything hinged on Rex being able to force Cain to show his hand. Rex hoped that he could lower Cain's guard by letting NoFace be captured first, then having the rest of his troops dragged away from the bunker so Cain would be left alone with him and several EVOs.

Of course, those troops were unharmed and NoFace was secretly already released on Yefim's orders and stationed outside, reining in his powers to give Cain the false sense of security. With no one else around to watch him or catch his words, Cain stooped to using his EVO control device and carelessly yakked away. If there was one other thing that Rex had learnt since all the times that he'd faced Cain, was that Cain loved to gloat when he thought he was winning. And that, was Rex's ace in the hole.

"So you've succeeded –you got Cain talking and controlling the EVOs. And you recorded everything with the camcorder that you had redevised, that was small enough to not be obvious," Six finished for Rex, nodding his head.

"Exactly! Isn't that the greatest story you have ever heard?" Rex slammed his palms down on the counter, getting excited.

"No," Six replied in a flat tone and took a gulp of his drink.

Rex's face fell and he pouted.

Then Six showed a small smile.

"But I have to admit, I'm impressed. You beat Cain at his own game, exposing him and clearing Providence name at the same time."

Rex beamed at the praise, since getting one from someone as hard to impress as Six was like striking gold.

"I'm surprised that you managed to hook up the broadcast with modifications to the parts from the jet. Since when were you such the engineer?"

Rex smirked proudly.

He wasn't the scientist like his older brother, but over the years, he did become rather interested in technical stuff, like electrical engineering and gadgetry. When he wasn't on missions or goofing around with Bobo or Noah, he spent considerable time pouring through the web to brush up his own knowledge.

"Well, Six, you don't know all my talents. I've been brushing up on my electronics and mechanics since *my mega billboard prank with Bobo backfired. Besides, *Holiday has always been pretty strict on my education."

At that, Six suddenly gave what looked like an evil smirk, giving Rex a certain sense of foredoom. He nervously took a few gulps of his drink to calm himself down, immediately dreading what was coming next.

"Which reminds me, I think I have been too slack on your combat training," Six drawled in a deliberate, uncharacteristically expected manner, "We'll have to train you harder to make sure you can wriggle your way out a tight spot instead of electrocuting your team members along with the opponent."

Rex promptly spit out the drink he had in his mouth and sputtered, knowing for sure that Six was definitely going to raise the intensity and difficulty of his training.

* * *

The new jet smoothly landed, parked right next to the one which Six and Rex flew in.

Well, since Rex had NoFace dismantle several parts, the jet obviously couldn't be used. And Rex was no aircraft engineer so he couldn't fix it either. Hence, they waited another day for Providence to send in a new jet so they could escort Cain back with them.

An aircraft engineering team filed out the plane and saluted to Six before briskly jogging over to the old one to repair it.

Yefim had a full contingency seeing them off, giving Six and Rex a salute. Rex was almost embarrassed at the formal show of gratitude. He would have quickly retreated into the jet with Cain in tow, if it were not for NoFace –or rather, Nikolay –who suddenly showed up with a group of EVOs behind him.

"Nikolay," Rex waved cheerfully, "Seeing me off?"

He nodded.

"To say my –our thanks again."

Six cast a glance at the EVOs in acceptance of their thanks then turned to Yefim to give a final handshake.

"Thank you for assisting us in our mission, Statesman Yefim. Rest assured, we will recover those missing EVOs who had been shipped off by Cain. Providence will also come up with an antidote to plurge Cain's serum. We will return once we have the solution, so no one can cause any more relapse or mind control them again."

Yefim gave the heartiest laugh Rex had ever heard.

"That's good, we will await your good news. But in the meantime, I think no one will dare to try. Nikolay will be protecting the EVOs well."

Rex smiled, relieved at the outcome.

Yefim made a speech the day before, addressing the public and introducing a horde of EVOs up on the podium. People were stunned and amazed to discover the EVOs were docile. Since Nikolay could 'talk' with their nanites, he was able to calm them down and enabled them to retain some semblance of conscious control.

Rex then spent the rest of the day curing most of them –without the interference of Cain's controller, he could cure them easily, much to the joy and relief of the townspeople. Many gave their thanks and apologies, making Rex feel the lightest that he had in days.

Only a handful of EVOs opted to remain as they were, including Nikolay.

The black haired man who bore striking facial resemblance to Yefim, shook his head slowly. Nikolay closed the few steps to his father and held his gaze.

"No, not as Nikolay, but as NoFace."

Yefim's smile got cut off his face.

"What do you mean by that?"

"This is the last time, Father, that I will be Nikolay. The last, you will see me. Then I will be Nikolay, no more."

"B-but you're not making any sense!" Yefim stammered, flabbergasted, "You're like Rex –you can change your appearance-"

"I cannot forget the bad dream. But when I woke from it, I wished to return, for the bad dream became the better life. The old home beckons."

"You can't mean that," Yefim snapped, looking indignant, "You'd rather sleep outside, in that broken, run down place that haven't been restored?"

"Please, Father. Accept," Nikolay begged, brows twisted upward in agony.

He picked up his father's hand and clasped his own over it.

"It is hard for us. I do not feel 'home'. I returned a stranger. I cannot fit in."

Yefim looked thoroughly crestfallen and sighed heavily.

"If you are sure of this decision, I won't stop you. I just want you to be happy, my son."

Then Yefim stroked Nikolay's face with his free hand.

Nikolay gave one last sad smile before he transformed, losing all features on his face.

"Thank you, Father. Do not be sad. You will always be with me. And I, with you."

The tender, heart-wrenching scene was more than Rex could handle. It was like every tear-jerker episode of all ten seasons of his favorite Spanish soap opera combined. Rex blinked back his tears then quickly dapped his eyes with his jacket sleeve so no one would see that they were wet.

Then Yefim quickly turned away and retreated to his car like he couldn't stand to be close to his son in case he changes his mind.

NoFace silently followed Yefim with his face as the car pulled away.

Rex laid a hand on NoFace's arm and looked up at the tall EVO.

"Tough choice, huh?"

NoFace turned and faced down on him, then quietly looked away. Rex mused inwardly that even without a proper face, he could still tell that the EVO was brooding.

"Hey, why don't you join me? I still have an EVO monkey and I'm an EVO myself, so I'm sure you'll fit right in."

NoFace jerked his head in surprise then turned to regard the other EVOs that were still waiting for him.

"You can bring the rest along," Rex added and cast a questioning glance at Six.

Six only cleared his throat in answer and went up the jet, pulling the handcuffed Cain with him.

Rex cleared his throat as well, realizing he had asked without thinking. How was he going to get it past White Knight?

 _Oh well, I figure it out somehow._

But NoFace shook his head slowly.

"We are happy to be invited. But we wish to remain here. We know our old home the best."

Rex smiled and nodded in understanding.

"Then I'll come back and look for you when I have the chance."

NoFace let out a laugh that resonated deep from within his chest.

"We will be waiting then."

* * *

Rex was in high spirits on the jet ride back to Providence. He kept whistling, stretched out on the row of seats opposite Cain.

Six, who would by now have raised an annoyed brow at Rex for not being able to remain quiet, also seemed to good spirits, as he paid Rex no mind.

But trust Cain to spoil the mood, suddenly erupting into fits of maniacal laugh barely an hour into the flight.

"Quit it, you're freaking me out, weirdo," Rex snapped and sat up, swinging down one leg to the floorboard.

"You're rejoicing too early, Rex. So I can't help but laugh at your stupidity."

Rex stared at him crossly.

"Excuse me, but you were the one who played into my hand. Or is your memory failing at the thought of rotting in jail?"

Cain let out a rugged chortle that seemed over-exaggerated. His shoulders shook and he rocked back and forth, creaking the thick leather belt that Six had clasped over his body to the chair, so that he had no chance of escaping.

"Don't be daft, Rex. You won't have the luxury of bringing me back to Providence before I die. So you lose."

"The hell I'll let you die!" Rex snarled, shoulders tensed, stomping both feet on the floorboard now.

"Rex, just ignore him, he's trying to rile you up to annoy you," Six advised from his seat at the corner, along the same row as Cain.

Rex grunted, but continued, "I'll make you rot in Providence cell for the rest of your life. And make you talk on how you created the serum and where you sent those missing EVOs. Only then, you can die."

Cain suddenly calmed, remaining motionless, crazy grin wiped off his face. Rex stared, bewildered at his swinging reactions, never seeing him appear so deranged before.

"Who said you get to choose? It's the Rise's call. You won't be getting anything out of me –not the Remote EVO Activation Serum nor the missing EVOs."

Cain sounded solemn, weary and defeated.

"Remote EVO Activation Serum," Rex repeated, "That's a mouthful. I doubt you're the brains behind this –tell me, who's the one who concocted the juice?"

"Who is the Rise?" Six asked immediately after, arching a fierce brow.

Before Cain could answer, his head suddenly blew up, splattering mess everywhere, painting the cabin in crimson blood mixed with sordid pieces, sending a horrified Rex reeling back on his seat with bile rising up his gut.

Rex and Six spent the rest of the flight holed up in the pilot's cabin, neither able to stomach remaining in the cabin with the revolting scene. Rex had seen plenty of gut-revolting mess in his life, but that probably had to take the cake.

Feeling sick to his gut was an understatement. Rex hugged his stomach and cupped his mouth all the way, praying that he wouldn't hurl a Niagara fall of half-digested, acidic grossness from his stomach. He sagged against the side window, so he could quickly smash it open and spew out his vomit if he couldn't keep it in.

Six seemed to hold out better, or at least, good enough to be able to give White Knight the latest grotesque report. Rex felt more sick on remembering and stared down the tiny structures dotting the landscape that rolled by. Skydiving would have been less vomit inducing by a mile.

As they passed by the familiar, bronzy, barren cliffs and valleys, Rex was able to breathe better on the prospect of abandoning the plane with that headless body at the back. Providence HQ rose from the dusty, sun-baked, cracked soil like a glistening sword of white –a shining beacon to Rex's nauseating prison ride. He never felt so relieved to see it.

As they neared, he noticed patches of dark specs moving around a way off from the skyscraper, on the left of the main entrance. However, it seemed sort of cloudy down there so he couldn't quite see clearly. He was going to alert Six to it, but thought better against it, afraid to open his mouth least he hurls.

Instead, he wordlessly raced out the pilot's cabin and leapt right to the door, not caring that he kicked it open and sent the metal flap flying away. Hell was going to rain down on him before he touched the gruesome bloody floor with his sneakers. His jacket, unfortunately, got messed up, and he'd warily rolled it up inside out, tucking it under his arms. He was going to have to scrub it a million times when he got back –he'll be damned if there remained any bloodstains.

Rex was unsteady on his Slyder, but he went slow so it was still manageable. Having escaped from the plane, Rex suddenly felt better, like he could breathe normally again.

He dived down lower, hearing the mooing cries first before he was close enough to make out hordes of cows and bulls, each one separated by criss-crossing, bluish light –force shield cages.

Rex frowned, confused as he continued surveillance on his way down.

Some of the animals seemed pretty agitated, galloping around and around in their tiny confined space, kicking up clouds of dust.

On spotting that familiar, shining golden blonde hair and red top hat, Rex quickly zipped the rest of the way down.

"Noah! Bobo!" Rex called as he recalled his hover board, "What's with the dairy farm?"

"Rex, You're back! I heard from White Knight you went back to Kiev. How's the Bug Jar?"

Rex frowned, immediately seeing through Noah's forced smile and knowing when his friend was deliberately ignoring his question.

Rex looked to Bobo instead, who pointed at Holiday, who was approaching them.

"What can I say? The Doc misses our Petting Zoo. Decides to open a Petting Farm instead," Bobo replied in his usual joking tone.

"Okay, weird…" Rex trailed off, spying something that made him feel queasy again.

He stared at the bull right at the closest cage that didn't have a tail.

"That one –I recognize it," Rex deadpanned, raising a shaky finger towards it, "I think I was the one who chopped off its tail."

Rex looked up to see Holiday stopping right in front of him, her grim expression confirming his worst nightmares had come true.

"That's right, Rex, Your brother and I separately discovered abnormalities returning to the blood specimens recovered. We had a conference call a few days back and confirmed our findings matched, so we had to acquire all the cows from that farm –and it was good timing too. A few started turning EVO so we had a little trouble with the transport and getting them all into cages."

"Yea, too bad you missed all the fun. Noah and I had a blast playing rodeo –"

Noah drove his elbow into Bobo's side, shutting him up.

Rex was lost for words with chaos rummaging his mind, staring off blankly into space.

"Oh Rex," Holiday laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, "I'm sorry this happened. But I heard from White Knight that the Bug Jar relapse cases are a dud."

"Yea," Noah added softly, "At least those people didn't succumb to relapse on their own –Cain had instigated the whole thing and messed with their nanites, right?"

"That's right," Holiday nodded, "So far it has only happened to animals on this particular farm and nowhere else. So there could be other factors causing it."

Rex knew that they were trying to make him feel better and usually, he'd perk right back up, since he was naturally sunny and optimistic.

But this time, their words brought him cold comfort. He'd cured the cows only a few weeks back, so why were they relapsing again and so quickly?

He felt sickening bile rise to his throat.

 _My cure isn't permanent._

Rex promptly pushed out of their way, and vomited.

* * *

 **Author's Comments:**

So, how do you find NoFace? Love him? Hate him? XD

If you wanna know, I've turned him into a good character here, mainly because I always held a soft spot for him. I thought he was just an angry, sullen guy who was venting his anger onto the world, and onto Rex. After all, being abandoned is such a terrible thing, so one could forgive him for misplacing his anger.

Besides, I thought it'd give him more character depth to show how he has acknowledged his mistake and come to terms with Rex. I liked to think that NoFace comes to feel gratitude towards Rex for freeing them from the Bug Jar and curing all of them. It feels poignant. ***** **v** *****

 **Footnotes:**

*Rex's billboard prank with Bobo :

Go and re-watch "Guy VS. Guy," it's a damn funny episode. XD

I couldn't stop laughing. Rex and Bobo tried to pull off the stunt of the century to prank Noah. But their plan horribly backfires on them because they messed with Holiday's equipment, stealing her stuff for their prank! XD

Anyway, I thought it would be cool to make it a lesson that sparked off his interest with gadgets and electronic engineering.

*Holiday on Rex's education :

"Without A Paddle" is another funny episode to watch. One of my favorites, actually. ^_^  
Besides the crazy fun tennis match and Rex's rise to fame as a tennis star, I cracked up at the last part when Holiday was reviewing his grades.

It was super funny when she said she was going to start teaching him. Though we never saw that happen in the rest of the cartoon, I'm keeping it as assumption that she did so. Lol.


	9. Pets

_ I am sorry. This update has been long... tooooo long... can I make it up with this long chapter? Even though the story is already _monstrously_ long... and I'm NOT EVEN halfway there. T_T

Thanks guys - those who had commented - it really encourages me. And those who had followed - hope you can be patient long enough for me to complete this. Which I WILL. I am absolutely committed to this. I swear.

PS to Mudkip - yes there is abit of Rex-angst ^_^... well not reeeaaally angst... but more like, downcast? like dispirited, for a while. He's human after all, and I like those parts of him that "feels" alot - like gets upset, gets angry, gets wacky etc. I hope you'll like him here too. =D

* * *

 **Chapter Nine: Pets**

(Summer. Rex is down and everyone tries to cheer him up, even in odd ways)

Rex never knew it was possible to repeatedly vomit on an empty stomach until he was retching his entire digestive tract for four days straight, right after the mission in Kiev. Holiday and the rest of the medical team were on high alert, plugging him into various machines, since Rex hardly ever suffered such extreme physical discomforts unless he was overloaded with active nanites.

Eventually, they surmised that his sudden, extreme anxiety created his intestinal problems, causing an increase in acidic fluids in his stomach and an acid reflux. But by then, his arms were poked with so many needles and felt so numb that he'd thought he lost them, along with his lungs, and maybe even a kidney.

Thankfully, once the right medication was administered, Rex stopped puking his guts out. Even so, he was still weak and lethargic, so he remained in the medical bay, drifting in and out of sleep like a half-dying chap.

Well acquainted to the daily routine that occurred for the past four days, the doors slid open right on cue after lunch, just as he expected. Like clockwork, Holiday and a few scientists with white overcoats filed into the pristine, all white medical bay to check up on him.

Providence scientists all also doubled as medical doctors, and some like Holiday, were qualified combat officers as well, who were also deployed on field missions along with the combat troops from time to time.

Now, they were armed with their clipboards, stethoscopes and wheeling in a tray with medical apparatus that sent Rex shivering in chagrin at the sight of them.

"God please, Holiday, not another needle," Rex whined before they set up the apparatus. He already had an IV drip plugged into his arm and had enough of needles poking him in the last four days to last him a lifetime.

Holiday gave a sympathetic look and gently brushed his messy fringe back from his forehead.

"Sorry Rex, just bear with it. We need to replace your IV drip and check up on your stats. But it's all for the better."

Rex stifled a sigh as the doctors busied themselves around him. Some fiddled with the controls on the dashboard set against one wall, and studied his results on the high-definition monitor that filled up the top half of the same wall. Others waved a hand-held bio-scanner over him, checking on his nanite count and biometrics.

Normally, Rex would lie on the bio-scanning unit inside the science lab for his checkups. But Holiday decided it would be more conducive and he would be better rested in a private room, hence she had moved him over to this single medical ward.

Rex winched as more blasted needles stabbed various parts of his body while the doctors filled their syringes with his body fluids. Then they each transferred the collected fluids into test tubes and inserted them into various machines. Rex forced his gaze up to the ceiling, feeling nauseous watching them work.

Though Rex knew they are only trying to help him, he couldn't help but feel like a lab rat under their stoic, expressionless faces. It felt more like they were taking samples to study him as an alien species rather than treating him as a patient.

Holiday was the only one with a warm smile to spare so it was the one reassuring factor that held him back from his irrational desire to bust out the medical room.

"Well, good news, Rex, it seems like your gastrointestinal acid levels are back to normal levels," *Dr. Amelia Rhodes, Holiday's right hand assistant, informed cheerily in a distinct, English accent, after a few minutes of studying his fluid samples.

She was almost a mirror image of Holiday, in that they were both pretty brunettes with green eyes. Though of course, Holiday was the prettier one in Rex's opinion –there was just no contest with that. And whereas Holiday's hair was a dark cinnamon, Dr. Rhodes' was a lighter shade, like a chestnut tone.

Rex smiled weakly, glad there was at least one other person besides Holiday who acted like a normal human instead of an emotionless robot. Though he had been in Providence for as long as he could remember, and had gone in and out of the science lab for countless times like it was his room, Rex was still quite unfamiliar with the other eighteen scientists stationed in headquarters.

Aside from Holiday and Dr. Rhodes, Rex never talked to the rest of them much, probably because they always looked too serious to be bothered with him when he comes nosing about with his inquisitive questions. Besides, Holiday had always been the one who showered the most attention and care on him, literally taking him under her wing. Dr. Rhodes was less of a caretaker, but she was still very friendly nonetheless and was the only one who bothered to chat with him if Holiday was too busy to pay attention to his whims.

Mid examination, the door slid open again and in came the two other friendly faces whom Rex was most relieved to see.

"Bobo, Noah, glad you found time to see me."

Bobo grunted, cheeky look in place. "Nah, only because it's more fun to watch you tortured then it is to torture someone else."

"Haha, very funny, Bobo. Just say that you ran out of prank ideas," Rex replied in a mock haughty tone, though he couldn't keep himself from smiling.

Bobo was characteristically sardonic and cynical, but Rex supposed that was just part of his charm. Deep down, Bobo was actually a loyal and caring friend, though of course, he would never admit that aloud to anyone. And if anyone tried to reveal his true heart, in Bobo-speak, he would rather 'pluck off all his hair like a hairless ostrich then to cough out such contrived, saccharine lies'.

Noah snorted as they stopped a little way off from the bed so as not to stand in the way of the doctors.

"No, it really is more fun to watch you turn into a porcupine."

Rex cleared his throat loudly and aimed an amused gaze at Noah, who was currently acting like a second Bobo. Rex chuckled twistedly to himself that it was 'wonderful' how both his best friends put up similar bites as a front, though deep down, they were genuinely worried about him. It was just part of their character to make mean jokes and the three of them had been pals long enough to know better.

"Which shows how boring your life is without me. Or better yet, proves how desperately you needed an excuse to get out of Basic. I knew you wouldn't be able to last the training for a second time."

Noah made an exaggerated gasps, hand flying to his mouth.

"No! How could you tell? Please don't tell Hutton, or he's gonna pile on extra punishments on me for slacking," Noah begged in a ridiculous comedic manner, tickling Rex, prompting a laugh.

Since Rex fell severely ill, Noah had completely abandoned Basic, sitting by his side all throughout his sickly ordeal, leaving only to take meal breaks and showers. He even slept in the same room, stretched out on the couch opposite the medical bed. Though Noah never outwardly said it, Rex knew that Noah was really worried about him, and wanted to be close by so he call for the doctors if his condition suddenly worsened. And in Rex's waking hours, Noah dulled his boredom chatting with him, and lessened his anxiety with jokes.

Noah's actions touched Rex, particularly since Noah risked Hutton's wrath by skipping Basic even though he had officially signed up for it. It was unlike the first Basic that they signed up for as teens, where they were just seen as two kids mucking around, so they were allowed to leave the training course after a week. For this time round, Noah signing up for Basic was actually taken seriously.

So although Noah had asked Holiday to give Hutton a formal excuse for him, Hutton wasn't happy and warned that Noah would have to be punished for apparently 'breaking' Providence military code. But whatever the punishment was, Noah didn't know yet, as Hutton had not given it. In fact, Noah coolly brushed it off when Rex talked to him about it, acting totally unworried, so Rex surmised that Noah probably didn't want Rex to get worried for him.

It surprised Rex somewhat, as normally, Noah would have fretted about it to some extent, being the more responsible one between the two of them. Yet Noah as able to throw authority aside to stick by him, even whilst knowing Providence doctors were here to look after Rex. It spoke volumes of how much Rex mattered to Noah, and knowing that, warmed and comforted Rex immensely.

Bobo and Noah hung around a bit, exchanging playful banter with Rex until the doctors were done with his checkup and filed out the room. Holiday shooed the two of them out, saying that Rex needed his rest, so Bobo left, while Noah remained, promising to be quiet like the previous days. Holiday nodded, trusting Noah and was just leaving when Caesar suddenly appeared, blocking her way.

Caesar looked much more cleaned up than whenever Rex saw him over video conference. He'd shaved his goatee and his hair was properly trimmed. He was also dressed in his usual olive green utility vest, black turtleneck and dark jeans.

"Caesar!" Holiday exclaimed, "Finally, you're here."

"Dr. Holiday, good to see you again. Dr. Rhodes informed me that you would be here with Rex. Sorry I couldn't come down earlier because I was caught up in one of our projects. Anyway, I hope you don't mind that I'd already taken the liberty to collect additional samples from the EVO cows, since I'd passed by them outside the building."

"Oh, already? No, I don't mind, but that was fast, how long ago did you reach?" Holiday asked, raising a brow.

"Only a couple of minutes. I'll have to do further research before I can draw accurate conclusions, but if you have time, I'll like to go through with you in detail what I have found so far for these newer, developed nanites."

"Yes of course, Caesar, I've been looking forward to it. It'd be so much easier to work with you on this in the lab rather than just through video conference."

Noah, who had watched them with his arms crossed, fingers tapping the sides of his arm with impatience, cleared his throat loudly, catching their attention.

"Uh, I know you're busy, but Caesar, don't you want to see how Rex is doing?" Noah reminded in a dry tone.

"Oh," Caesar merely said, then looked surprised to see Rex as if he had forgotten that Rex was also in the room, which was typical since he was completely oblivious to everything else aside from his scientific endeavors.

"Right, I almost forgot, Dr. Holiday had informed me a few days back –Rex has been suffering from acute mental stress which caused chemical imbalances that affected his gastrointestinal system."

Rex tried not to feel slighted. Throughout the last six years, his older brother had been travelling around the world with Meechum and Rylander on scientific exploits and discoveries. He rarely returned –usually only twice a year –on Rex's real birthday and Christmas. The only other time they got to see each other were over video conferences, which were also few and far between since Caesar seemed to be so busy.

Rex didn't really mind that they hardly spent time together –he understood how much Caesar's passions lie in his scientific research. Besides, Rex was kept pretty busy himself with Providence missions, and he has the whole team here accompanying him, including Noah.

But at times like this, Rex couldn't help wanting more attention. He wanted Caesar to come fuss over him too the way Holiday and Noah does. It would have been great if Caesar could at least act like he had rushed over to visit his miserable little brother who was on the verge of vomiting out his heart. But Rex was obviously hoping for too much. And it's not like Rex could throw away enough pride to admit he was still such a baby that he wanted his older brother's attention.

He couldn't help but feel a little scalded that he wasn't even important enough on Caesar's list for him to remember that Rex had been severely sick. Though by now, Rex resigned to himself that he really shouldn't be surprised about Caesar's callous behavior. Not to say that Caesar wasn't concerned for Rex, but more like he tended to be careless about Rex's feelings. He was either blindsided by the scientific side of things, or focused on Rex's well-being in a methodical manner rather than in a brotherly one.

Only now remembering about Rex's miserable state, Caesar strode in and fiddled with the computer controls, looking over the vitals and stats that Providence doctors had collected and stored into system. He spent a while pouring through them, while Holiday patiently waited by the door. Caesar nodded his head from time to time, mumbling softly to himself, before turning round to regard Rex when he was done.

"Mijo, your nanites are still seventy-eight percent below normal levels," Caesar said in a matter-of-fact tone, walking up to the bed.

"Yup, I know that, which is why I'm still resting and officially off Providence's duty rooster until I'm back a hundred percent," Rex replied.

"Well, to get back to a hundred percent, you need to be in a clear state of mind, since your nanite count is strongly influenced by your mental state of well-being."

"Oh, thanks for the reminder, brother. I'll be sure to dunk my brain into a pail of water with live wire to rewire the chemical signals in my brain so I'll never get gloomy again," Rex retorted. He couldn't keep the edge off his tone, somewhat annoyed that Caesar couldn't just say a simple, 'Glad to see you're still alive, Mijo,' or 'how are you feeling, Mijo.'

Caesar frowned at Rex's sarcasm, and opened his mouth to say something, but he stopped when the door slid open.

"Dr. Salazar," Six acknowledged as he stepped in, nodding in his direction.

"Six," Caesar returned the greeting.

"Glad that you could make it, I heard Holiday saying the Science department could really use your expertise."

Caesar nodded. "We're going to go over the lab right now. I was just looking over Rex's condition."

At Rex's name, Six regarded Rex and came up to his side.

"The doctors told me that your biometrics are stable now, though your nanite count is still low."

Rex thought he was going to pop a vein listening to another straight-faced guy who was as serious as Caesar and just as hopeless as Caesar in their failing expressions of care. It was awful because deep down, Rex knows that they do care about him but with the way they usually are, sometimes, Rex couldn't help but question that.

"Geez, more concern for my little bots again? Don't worry, Six, I'll get back up and kicking soon enough."

Holiday gave a sudden sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Rex, I think what these two clumsy, big boys really meant, was that they were really worried about you and they hope that you would get well soon, isn't that right, boys?"

Holiday lifted an irate brow at the both of them, causing them to look utterly chastised. Six coughed into his hand while Caesar grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck. Noah tried stifling a laugh from the side as he watched their reactions.

Suddenly, Rex found their awkwardness rather amusing. He mused to himself how he'd never noticed how similarly clumsy they were in their EQ skills. Fact was, they were actually really caring, just that Six doesn't know to express it while Caesar tended to forget to.

Trust Holiday to read into this and tell off these two grown men how to talk. Holiday had always been some sort of glue, the 'surrogate' mom, or mother hen, and big sister, translator for science-speak, Six-speak and a pro-tactician on the EQ-front.

Thinking that, Rex felt lighter again and smiled to himself. Thanks to Holiday for pointing that out, Rex realized that what Six and Cesar lacked in words, at least, they made up for it with their presence.

* * *

"Amazing! Look at the internal structure of its coding. Whoever have done this has done a great job reverse-engineering them and altering its programming."

Rex strolled into the science lab in time to hear Caesar's enthusiastic observation, bent over a microscope with Holiday and Dr. Rhodes beside him. They looked engrossed over their specimen, while the other scientists were equally busy at work.

Rex mused to himself how his brother looked like a kid at Christmas, with dark eyes shining, shoulders jumping with energy while he spoke.

"Uh, Caesar, you mean _dangerous_ job," Meechum corrected from the table behind them, brows twitching.

Ghostly Rylander, who floated inside a plasma-molecular-transducer containment cylinder that had been wheeled in, gave a hearty laugh.

"Dangerous is not in his dictionary, Peter, I thought you knew that."

Rex laughed, couldn't be agreeing more.

The scientists all turned their heads at him.

"Why, Rex!" Rylander exclaimed, "It's been years since I've seen you. Had it been five? Or six years? Seems like you'd grown taller."

"And more handsome too," Rex chirpily reminded. "And uh, doctor, you've seen me a couple of times through video calls in between every now and then."

"Yes of course, but it's different seeing you in the flesh," Rylander pointed out with wagged brows, smile tugging at the corners of his lips, "Get it? In the flesh?"

Rylander started laughing at his own joke.

Rex grimaced, supposing that Rylander thought it would be funny coming from a poltergeist. But it was actually more creepy, like those Halloween tales of ghosts being real.

"It's good to see you again, Dr. Rylander, R. Meechum," Rex simply nodded at them, opting to ignore Rylander's odd joke.

Dr. Meechum looked older, with more greys in his hair and lines on his face, but looked as sharply dressed as before. He was permanently dressed in a suit like Six number two, but in charcoal grey instead of green. And his clothes looked pressed and so crease-free it were as if he'd soaked them in starch. He stood with his back extremely straight, like always, so the whole visage made him look like a strict, no-nonsense person.

Whereas Meechum has changed, time has halted for Rylander. His translucent, spectre form held the same appearance and features as his physical self, right before he *fell into the reactor six years ago.

Till now, Rex wasn't sure what to make of this. It was like seeing someone die right before his eyes, then later revived as an apparition.

"Ah, Mijo, what are you doing out of bed?" Caesar questioned and went over to Rex, holding out a hand-held nanite reader. "We better check on your nanite levels."

Rex gave an amused smile, reminding himself that in Caesar-speak, his older brother just meant to say he was concerned.

"Look, it's enough to ground me within HQ. Am I also not allowed to take a stroll within these lovely walls? It's so lonesome by myself in the medical bay," Rex complained exaggeratedly.

Rex's gastric condition had improved over the last three days and he was well enough to get off the IV drip, but because of his worrying biometric readings, he was ordered to remain at rest. Noah returned to Basic, citing that his baby-sitting duties were over, which confounded him, as Noah would rather subject himself for more inhuman grilling, rather than plow the Xbox controllers with Rex. Left alone with nothing to do, Rex was bored out of his mind.

"Hmm, but it doesn't look good, Mijo," Caesar was shaking his head, "Your nanite count is at safe levels, but it's still very low."

Holiday immediately comes over, looking at the nanite indicator. She frowns and gives Rex a concerned gaze, fine brown brows worried at the tips.

"This _is_ troubling, Rex, you've never been low for this many days before. Are you sure you're alright? Maybe you should go back and lie down."

Rex huffed slightly and crossed his arms, plonking himself onto the nearest white tall stool.

"Look, I'm telling ya, I'm fine. I'm only a little lethargic, that's all. I'm gonna grow mold if I keep staying in bed."

"Hmm, Rex does have a point. I think moving around could be good for him to get his strength back up," Dr. Rhodes said, nodding.

When Caesar cast her a questioning look, she continued, "I mean, our studies and results have shown that his Omega-1 replication abilities are partially influenced by his adrenaline levels. When his adrenaline spikes, his nanites kick into high gear."

"Well, that is true," Holiday agreed, face in contemplation, then smiled at Dr. Rhodes, "Thanks for pointing that out, Amelia."

"Cool, since everyone can agree I'm not to be bound to bed, can I check out how's your nanite research coming along? I think I heard Caesar mention something about them being reverse-engineered. This has something to do with the EVO cows, ain't it?"

At his question, Holiday, Dr. Rhodes and a few other Providence scientists looked positively ill and it struck Rex that something was off.

"Ah, Mijo, I've never pegged you to have the calling for science. Is Mom and Dad's genes finally kicking in?" Caesar joked in a bland manner.

"It's nothing, Rex, just our usual research," Holiday dismissed.

Well, Rex was usually never interested in their science pursuits, only because he rarely understood half of the alien terminology Holiday used with her team. He only asked because there was nothing else to do and he was partially curious. He figured if he'd to continue in this nanite war, he'd to know what he was up against.

Plus, Holiday and her assistants looked sort of nervous, like they didn't want him nosing, so that, piqued Rex's curiosity further.

Rex marched right up to the giant computer screen mounted onto the upper wall that filled a third of its width.

"I know that and I wanna know what you brainiacs have found. What are we looking at here?" Rex insisted to know.

Holiday looked a little tensed and rubbed her forehead.

"Rex, I'm happy that you're in science student mode, but we don't have time for this. This is serious work and Caesar and his team will only be here a few days before they leave to continue their other research."

"And I'm seriously telling you, that I seriously wanna know."

"Oh, we have some time, I suppose and since you're so enthusiastic, let me share with you then," Caesar humored him, giving a resigned smile.

"Caear!" Holiday protested, then gave a look of resignation as Caesar fiddled with the computer controls and brought out a split window on the giant screen.

"See here, Rex, these are the microscopic views of the active nanites from your blood and the EVO cows. Spot the differences?"

Rex nodded. The magnified, nickel colored nanites differed in its structural, modular shapes.

"I'm guessing the differences are beyond their appearance, right?"

"In the EVO cows, the algorithms of every node in each nanite has been re-sequenced to perform variable commands through complicated, autonomous permutation as a critically competent, self-adapting entity."

Rex gave a blank stare.

"Um… can you speak english?"

"It basically means the coding of most of the components of the nanites have been altered in one way or another," Rylander helpfully clarified.

"Right, so they've been reprogrammed." Rex nodded slowly.

"Reprogrammed to supersede its deactivated state imposed by a higher dominion, in which case, is your deactivation abilities," Caesar stressed.

Rex's brows twitched.

"Can you simplify that?"

Meechum gave an impatient sigh.

"Jesus, aside from your similar, physical features, I'm amazed that you two are brothers," Meehcum shook his head and folded his arms.

"He means, that these altered nanites are able to override your deactivation command, thus re-activate themselves. Which was why those EVO cows reverted to their active nanite state, again."

"Woa, hold up," Rex held his hands up, trying to comprehend those words, "So saying that, don't tell me that these EVO cows have nanites that could reactivate on its own, over and over no matter how many times I deactivate them?"

"Actually, the situation is more dire than that," Caesar pulled up a third window on the right, "I've done a small set up over the last few weeks to test the efficiency of its coding sequencing permutation till it derives at the re-activation key."

Caesar played a time-lapse video on fast-forward speed.

"Observe what happened when I blast a minute number of nanites with a strong electromagnetic signal, for a tenth of a second, that vibrates in the same frequency as yours, to deactivate it –"

"Wait, wait, what?" Rex stopped his brother, thoroughly baffled. "What do you mean you could deactivate them? Have you finally come to a breakthrough on curing EVOs? I mean, without needing to use _me_?"

"Actually, it's more accurate to say that the genius, Dr. Brandon Moses did."

"You mean the _phony_ scientist," Rex corrected. Holiday scoffed and rolled her eyes, agreeing with Rex.

"Oh, he was a real scientist alright. I read a lot about his theories and his work," Rylander vouched, "Pity he was a little too business minded."

Meechum made a loud harrumph and made a sardonic comparison, "Yea, like the Consortium."

"Gentlemen, please, can we not sidetrack?" Caesar requested.

"Uh, just another question before that," Rex raised a hand, "How come you never told me about your breakthrough?"

Caesar shook his head and looked in a tad in dismal.

"Because it isn't –at least not practical enough in installation and execution to be functionally implemented for mass-scale nanite deactivation, should the need arises."

"And by that, you mean…" Rex pressed.

"I studied Dr. Moses' extraction methods on using highly charged magnetic waves to enhance the nanite activity. Similarly, it can also trigger the nanite activation 'switch'. The reverse can also be done in the same manner. However, for a large scale extraction, that is, for anything bigger than a mouse, the power required is too immense to be sustainable in the long run."

Caesar waved his hands about as he explained.

"But in my set ups, by containing a small number of nanites, I'm able to implement that method with a reasonable amount of power. It won't be applicable for curing EVOs, but it's sufficient to run my experiments."

"Amazing!" Dr. Rhodes gushed, hands meeting palm to palm in an impressed manner, "I see, so that was how you came by your results. Holiday and I had been wondering about your time-lapse video since you showed us last week. On our end, we only discovered the re-mutation after several days of observing stacks of test tube samples under the microscope."

Holiday nodded in agreement.

"That's right. Your experiment was a good idea. You have to show me your equipment set up later," Holiday requested.

"Why, thank you Amelia, Holiday. And of course, I'd be _delighted_ to," Caesar thanked, looking unusually pleased at the compliments. He was normally quite neutral whether one thrashed or praised his efforts in his scientific endeavors. But then again, Rex hasn't exactly seen his brother much whenever they started on 'science talk.' Rex was usually too disinterested to hang around to listen. After a short moment of catching up with each other, Rex would normally leave the lab to let the other Providence scientists hound his older brother.

"Really, Caesar, I thought you said not to sidetrack? Or are fan girls an exception?" Meechum pointed out in his usual disgruntled manner.

"Right, sorry Peter," Caesar gave him a sheepish smile, then looked back to Rex with a solemn face.

"Now, back to what I was saying, I deactivated the nanites multiple times and recorded the time it took in between to reactivate themselves."

Caesar replayed the video since Rex hadn't paid attention to it earlier. Text had been inserted to number the repeated experiments and Rex felt his mouth go dry with trepidation as he watched the nanites oscillate between its activated to deactivated state.

When activated, the nanites lit up like their electrons were charged. He felt sick to his gut watching the lights go on and off like a damaged lamp, since the recorded time between each cycle decreased.

"As you can see, every time the nanites get deactivated, it somehow triggers a hidden directive to automatically commence a re-sequencing permutation of their code, to unlock the deactivation encryption. And each time a nanite does this, it remembers the pattern of the decryption process, thus, enabling it to re-activate itself faster than before."

"In other words, the time it takes for these nanites to reconfigure their coding to re-activate themselves, becomes shorter with every deactivation attempt," Rex simplified in a dry tone.

Caesar and the other scientists nodded solemnly.

"I see, you are right, Caesar, this is _dire_ ," Rex added, feeling himself hunching over from the oppressing weight of such a revelation pressing on his back.

Caesar cleared his throat loudly.

"Well, I wasn't finished."

Rex gave his older brother a grim stare at the prospect of more bad news.

He pulled out a forth window in the screen that split into smaller thumbnails while continuing his depressing speech.

"These are blood samples taken from three dozen mice, half of which were injected with the REAS –"

"REAS? You mean the Remote EVO Activation Serum?" Rex interrupted, recalling Cain's words.

"Yes, that," Caesar confirmed. "And for the other half, I had purposely activated their nanites using the electro-magnetic method. This time-lapse video shows the general difference of the activated nanite structural forms between these two groups. Notice how the nanites activated by the REAS have transgressed further than the EVO cows."

Rex grew pale, palms becoming sweaty, breath coming in short pants. As Caesar described the video, Rex compared the energized movements of the nanites and the frequency of their blinking lights. The nanites activated by the REAS were indeed more galvanized, with the tubular nodes of every nanite sliding in and out of the center sphere in a frenzied, unstable manner, lights shuttering at high speeds like a light bulb gone haywire.

He recalled NoFace and remembered how it looked physically different from years before and realized that his nanites probably got an enhancement boost, aside from being re-activated.

"Right, so the REAS is like steroids for nanites," Rex deadpanned, feeling lightweight. "Seriously, how exactly was this done? I mean, you need big brains to reprogram the nanites, don't you? So who is this 'Rise' that Cain mentioned? And those guys who reprogrammed the nanites in those cows –do we have any leads on them?"

"Well, studying their decryption patterns, re-activated forms and nodes arrangement, we can draw comparable similarities. Hence, we can deduce they were re-programmed by similar techniques. So if the Rise was the group that Cain mentioned to you, I'll bet my two cents that they were the ones behind the EVO cows as well. Though saying that, they could be anyone with powerful connections or resources."

"That means, a _second_ Consortium," Meechum suggested sardonically and made another harrumph at the back of his throat.

Rex nibbled his lips thoughtfully for a few moments, mind spinning like a fly caught in a spider's web. His thoughts were all jumbled up at the grave news.

"Well, so this means that those cows were activated the same way, isn't it? A serum injected into their bloodstream, just without the remote activation. So could someone have contaminated their vaccines?"

Holiday nodded. "That's the biggest possibility. We've questioned the farm owner, but he doesn't know how their immunization injections got contaminated."

"But it does mean that whoever did this was skilled in espionage –probably an inside job to switch out the vaccines from either within the pharmaceutical, or veterinarian facility, or maybe even during the transport handling," Dr. Rhodes added.

"Then isn't anyone looking into the staff at the drug factory?" Rex suggested anxiously.

"Intel in already on it, but so far, they couldn't come up with any leads," Holiday replied dejectedly.

"Well, this fucking sucks," Rex spat wryly, getting more disturbed and apprehensive every minute.

The unsettling discovery was more frightening than battling EVOs themselves because it hinted a technology war, invisible from the eyes of men except at on microscopic level, that had been going on without anyone noticing.

"So these guys –the Rise – or whoever the hell we're up against, have basically carried out two sets of experiments. One could hinder my deactivation abilities if they are within range and the other, would reactivate themselves," Rex laid out the conclusion plainly, temples throbbing in ire.

"Yes, Mijo, that is unfortunately the case. And if our hypothesis is correct –that the ones responsible for the EVO cows and the incident at Kiev were the same group –then we can assume they will continue with their nanite reprogramming until they could dominate your Omega-1."

Rex felt himself stumble backwards into a chair.

"Perfect, so if I cross paths with modified nanites again, do anyone have any ideas how I could overpower them to shut them down permanently?"

When an uncomfortable silence replied him, with helpless stares exchanged between the scientists in the room, Rex felt sick to his gut again.

"Wait, then what about those parasitic, alien nanites from the bombs at the oil rig?" Rex suddenly remembered.

Holiday shook her head. "I'm sorry Rex, we couldn't study anything about it. Since Tango team have disarmed the bomb, the gadget they've brought back is completely dead –there were no traces of nanites anywhere, probably already destroyed and disintegrated in the disarming process."

Rex gave a huge sigh, feeling more stressed out by these negative news.

"You know what?" Rex stood up on legs that felt like jelly, "I think I'm really not the guy to stomach all these complicated stuff after all. So if anyone needs me, I'll be growing fungus back in the medical bay."

* * *

"Are you sure Six asked us to come down here?" Rex asked suspiciously, glancing about the huge vehicle garage in the ground level at the South Providence entrance.

Noah came to get him from the medical bay at mid-morning, passing the message that Six had ordered them to report for some emergency drill with the rest of the troops, but there was no one in sight.

Noah nodded his head a little too enthusiastically.

"Yup, he did, but we needa drive a way off down the canyon," Noah assured and jumped in through the open roof into the driver's seat of one of Providence field vehicles.

It was a hovercraft the size of a regular car, plated with lightweight silver titanium that makes it impenetrable to bullets.

"Ah-huh," Rex said doubtfully, "Funny how Six tells you instead of me."

Rex folded his arms as he planted his feet outside the passenger seat, refusing to get in.

Noah saw that Rex didn't buy his story and sighed.

"Okay, that was just my excuse to get you out. Now c'mon, do you know what it took for me to clear this garage of officers and temporarily mess with the security cams?"

Rex raised his brows in question.

"I had to rope in Bobo's help."

Rex broke into a snigger. "Oh wow, now that's a lot to ask for."

"Exactly!" Noah exclaimed. "I owe him _big_ time now, so let's not waste it. Let's jet and get outta here."

Rex dropped his snicker immediately.

"Oh, look Noah, I know the effort you took to try to bust me out, but I think it's best if I stayed in. I'm still grounded, remember? Besides, I thought you were supposed to be in Basic."

"Forget Basic," Noah exclaimed, standing up and slinging an arm over the frame of the field car. "And screw the rules. You never obey them half the time anyway."

"No, I can't –Six won't be happy."

"He's hardly happy," Noah joked.

"Holiday will get worried."

"She's always worrying about you," Noah countered.

"White Knight will be pissed."

"When was he never?"

Rex bit his lips, lost for excuses.

"Seriously Rex," Noah reached forward and squeezed his shoulder, pinning him with his piercing cerulean gaze, "What's the deal? It's just a drive out –get a breath of fresh air, clear your head –you'll feel loads better after this."

"No, you don't get it, Noah," Rex shrugged him off, "I don't feel like going anywhere."

Noah huffed.

"Yea, I know, which was why you holed yourself for days in the medical bay even though Holiday already said you should get to the training gym for some work out, to' oil your engine' and stuff."

Rex sighed and combed his hair back, leaning his side against the door.

"I have no energy for that."

"No problem. Just get your butt in –I'll drive. You can sleep on the way."

Rex shook his head, remaining listless.

"Not today, buddy, let's take a rain check."

Rex started walking off, but Noah was out the car in a jiffy and he grabbed Rex's arm.

"It's rainy season for you every day recently," Noah pointed out dryly, "You know, this was why Holiday was worried about telling you about the nanite reprogamming thing. If she hadn't told me about that, I would've thought that you'd banged your head bad for not being yourself."

Rex shrugged. "Well, learning about all that was sorta a head-banger. So that's why I needa lay down."

Noah squashed Rex's cheeks between his palms.

"God damn it, Rex! If you're my best friend, then get your ass into the car!"

"C'mon, Rex, you can do better than this. I'm already going easy on you, but you still haven't even scored once," Noah taunted, blue eyes flashing haughtily as he dribbled the ball from his left to right hand smoothly.

"You jerk, don't get cocky!" Rex seethed between clenched teeth as he lounged for the ball but failed. Noah fluidly passed the ball to his other hand behind his back and sidestepped gracefully out of Rex's reach, sweaty shirt brushing his.

Noah was down two strides when Rex turned to chase after, and cursed aloud, slapping his hands over his head as Noah threw the ball into the net though he was over half a court away.

"That should be foul!" Rex exclaimed unhappily. "That aim should be impossible! You're inhuman!" Rex pointed an accusing finger.

"Don't be a sourpuss, Rex. I get my perfect aim through practice," Noah flashed a proud grin then jogged over to get the ball that bounced lightly along the court.

"You can too, though I'm seriously beginning to question your skills. We've been playing for years –how can someone suck at basketball so much?"

Rex huffed in annoyance and folded his arms.

"It's not that my skills are bad –it's just you who have inhuman skills," Rex said indignantly.

Okay well, if he were honest with himself, he really sucked at the game, for reasons he couldn't fathom. In the years he'd played with Noah, he'd never beaten Noah –not even once. So it was a wonder that Rex even bothered to try.

He was surprised when after a half day's drive on the road, Noah had brought him to the old basketball court next to the large, unused drain canal, where they used to hang out. Initially, Rex wasn't in the mood to shoot hoops with Noah, feeling sluggish and down –it was pointless anyway since Noah would always win. But after Noah threw the ball at his head and edged him on with his jeers and snide remarks, Rex was riled into playing.

"C'mon, Rex, you're the inhuman one, remember? Having your EVO skills and all."

Rex scoffed.

"Hey, this and that are completely two different things, alright?"

Rex lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat streaming from his forehead, then made a face, grossed out by how his tee was entirely soaked in sweat. He pulled his tee off and threw it on the bench next to his jacket.

Noah followed suit, balancing the ball in between his thighs as he stripped his tee. Noah had tanned slightly over the years, but under the bright, mid-afternoon sunlight, Rex noted that Noah's skin looked brightened, nearly paling to his ghostly pale shade in junior high.

Rex chuckled as he remembered Noah's pissed off face every time that Rex joked about how he was like a vampire. In actual fact, Rex didn't see any problem with Noah's light colored skin and only said it to tease him. For some reason, back then, Noah's idea of looking like a 'hot, macho stud' was to have tanned skin like Rex and looking ripped like beach hunks.

At some point, Noah even had something to gripe about his height. Not that he was short –Noah grew further in high school and kept growing so he was about average height. Still, he was annoyed that he never reached the same towering height of the other basketball players in college. Good thing lacking the height advantage did not affect his chances on the competitive team since Noah was so awesome at the sport.

Rex's view was suddenly blocked by Noah's tee that came flying to his face, hitting him before he could duck.

Rex grunted disgustedly and plucked the equally soaking wet tee from his face.

"Ewww, Noah! That's gross –I tasted your sweat!"

Rex tossed Noah's tee onto the bench as well, grimacing.

"Hey, that's a winner's sweat, so you should be thankful."

"Oh yea? Well, why don't you taste my sweat if I win?"

"Pfffftttt… don't make me gag, Rex, like you'll beat me."

"I can if I'm in EVO mode."

"Hey, no way! That's cheating!" Noah protested, but Rex had already launched his arms straight for the ball.

Noah was quick to scoop the ball up above his head but Rex's nanite, flexible arms quickly followed. Noah refused to give the ball over, smoothly tossing the ball from hand to hand over and under his leg or around his back till a minute later, Noah was inadvertedly tangled up inside Rex's flexi-arms.

"Argh!" Noah groaned in frustration as he found himself effectively stuck, wrapped like a prey within a snake's grasps.

Rex snickered and as Noah cursed and hurled protests whilst he struggled against Rex's restraining limbs. Rex enjoyed every moment of Noah's misery. Rex usually never played foul in consideration of Noah's non-EVO abilities. But Rex decided this time would be an exception –he wanted to shut Noah's snotty mouth and teach his cocky tongue a lesson.

"C'mon, Noah," Rex taunted as he slowly approached. "Give me here, the ball."

Noah's arms were plastered to his back, still cradling the ball between his palms.

"Let go, Rex! It's uncomfortable! Do you want to really crush me?"

Rex snickered and loosened his grip just a bit so that the ball could slip out. Then he recalled one flexi-arm to pick the ball and balanced it on his open palm.

"Yep, just so I can prove once and for all that I can beat you," Rex announced, closing the distance between them, staring down at Noah when he stopped right before him.

Noah sighed and gave a look of resignation.

"Okay fine, you're the man. You're not as lame at this as I thought. So what was it that we bet? Tasting sweat, was it?"

Then Noah stretched his head towards Rex and licked a long line down his neck. Noah lapped at his skin slowly like the way a pet would, hot tongue drawing long and languid strokes while his lips grazed his skin.

Rex gasped and jolted in unexpected surprise, dumbfounded and not knowing how to react from the completely unexpected move. Then without warning, Noah elbowed Rex's nanite flexi-arms hard, pulled an arm out and stole the ball, shooting it clean into the hoop before Rex realized what had happened.

Rex stared wordlessly at Noah with his jaws open, flexi-arms slack and dropped limply in coils around Noah's feet. His head was pounding in pace with his chest. He was not able to decide which was more shocking –that Noah still managed a slam dunk even whilst caught, or that he'd actually lapped up the sweat running down his neck.

Noah took Rex's stunned look as victory and flashed his winning smile.

"Now, it's your turn, Rex, since I won."

Rex felt a tremor pass through him, pulling him out of his stunned state. Rex felt faint and wondered in ire how he was going to be able to do it.

 _Seriously?_ He had to lick Noah back? Rex found the idea more risqué than gross and started regretting his big, stupid mouth. Maybe stuffing Noah's sweaty tee into his mouth was better –disgusting, but at least, not as awkward.

"I'm waiting, Rex," Noah taunted and then he did this thing with his head, angling it sideways ever so slightly like an open invitation in the way that only Circe ever did, when she wanted some necking.

Noah wasn't Circe, so there was no reason for Rex to associate this and that together and hell, he didn't even know why he was remembering Circe again when he vowed to forget all about her after painfully learning about her pregnancy and marriage to Skywdd.

All of a sudden, he remembered the night where he poured out his pain to Noah. The warmth of Noah's chest and his gentle touches on his shoulder – in fact, just leaning close to Noah felt so comforting.

So maybe it was the warmth fresh from memory, or Noah's maddening taunt, that made Rex close his eyes and lean in to return the joke, even if it was a bad idea between two guys.

Noah tasted salty and hot under Rex's tongue. He felt Noah's breathing hitch and his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as Noah swallowed hard. Light, furtive fingers threaded Rex's hair and it shocked Rex like electricity running down his strands, into his scalp and jolting his brains. Rex pulled back and straightened immediately at the startling similarity to a lover's touch, consciously reminded of the familiar contact between him and Circe while they were still together.

Rex felt his throat run dry, unable to pin the anxiousness that suddenly seized his chest except to attribute it to the fact that two guys do not normally lick each other's neck, even if it was a dumb joke.

Noah stared at him wordlessly with an unfathomable expression but Rex couldn't read into it, as his communicator suddenly buzzed.

They both jolted, as if shocked out of a trance.

"Rex, are you there? Come in. You suddenly left Providence –we were worried!"

"Holiday? Yea, sorry about that, I'm with Noah, chilling at the old basketball court. I was a little bored staying indoors," Rex replied and put her on speakers. He'd steadied his breathing, but his reply was still a bit shaky.

"Good, I hope you got your energy back up, because we could really use your help right now."

Rex frowned, immediately worried.

"What happened, doc?"

"It's the cows. Two of them have destroyed the force field cages somehow and they're running loose outside Providence perimeter. And unfortunately, just before this, Six and Calan had activated an impromptu mass field training exercise, so none of the combat officers are at base."

Noah groaned. "Shit, not the cows again!"

Rex flashed him an equally grim look.

"We'll be right there, Holiday. Just stay indoors."

Rex and Noah scrambled to put on their sweaty clothes and jacket. Then Rex built his legs into the hover bike.

"Get on!"

Noah stared at him with wide eyes. "What about Providence field car?"

"Forget about the car. I'm the fastest thing around here. Now get your butt behind me!"

Noah flashed Rex a huge grin.

"Roger that."

* * *

Two EVO cows were running rampant, kicking dust across the front entrance of Providence HQ.

Strange thing was, the defense firing machines had not been deployed. Even if the combat troops had vacated the premises, Providence would still leave the security operations team around to watch the fort. And in instances like these, the security operatives could remotely control the machines and fire electric shots at the EVO cows to stun them into unconsciousness.

So what was security doing?

Noah jumped off Rex's hover bike even before he stopped.

"Wait, Noah! Where are you going?" Rex exclaimed, stunned that Noah was seemingly running straight towards those enlarged beasts that looked like bulls from hell.

"Getting weapons from the armory, of course!"

"Right, weapons," Rex repeated and looked down at his own fist, a little doubtful of himself.

Well, he'd already forced his nanites to build his hover bike and sped all the way back –surely he has enough to take on the EVO cows too.

Looking back up, he sees the two EVO cows turning their attention towards Noah, digging their hooves into the ground and kicking off in a galloping charge.

"Noah!" Rex screamed, heart stopping as the two beast charged from opposite sides on Noah's left and right, with mutated, gruesome horns aimed at him.

Thank god for Noah's lightning fast reflexes –he nimbly twisted out of the way whilst stepping atop the horns, using them like a springboard to bound several feet into the air. Rex stared with jaws dropped, shocked that Noah could leap so high though he was just an ordinary guy.

Okay, so maybe an ordinary guy with super leg muscles honed from years of basketball training –still, it was pretty unbelievable.

Noah did a back flip at the height of his jump and landed lightly on his feet, like a cat, a few yards away from the cows, closer to the front entrance. Rex caught Noah's cocky salute before he raced towards the steel enforced door. It automatically opened for Noah, who disappeared inside, then closed in a resounding thud.

The EVO beasts ended up clashing into each other, and let out a ferocious roar. They back stepped a few paces, then charged towards each other, butting heads. Their horns tangled together as their heavy heads pushed against each other. Even from the distance, Rex could feel the ground tremble beneath their massive, bounding bodies as they angrily stomped around in a frenzied dance.

Rex gulped hard, glad that they were keeping each other busy rather than directing their attention to him. In his current state, he wasn't sure that he could take them down.

Their fierce battle had also riled the other mutating cows still kept within their force field cages. Several had already reverted to their active nanite stage, so they were rampaging about restlessly within their confines, banging themselves against the invisible wall with terrifying ferocity.

Rex hoped that those force field cages would be able to hold against the powerful attacks until the technical team finds a way to strengthen the shield's hold.

A few minutes passed before Noah appeared from the west side, aiming a long rifle at the two beasts. He shot them with a round of what Rex recognized were the tranquilizer needles.

The effect was almost immediate; the beasts gave weak roars of discontent, before they grew slack and collapsed lifelessly onto the ground.

Rex let out a shaky breath and offered Noah a thumbs-up, grinning from ear to ear at Noah's awesome moves. It was a good thing after all that Noah went to Basic, for he had access to the armory with his Providence Trainee ID.

Though Noah stood over thirty yards away, Rex, with his superior sight, could clearly see Noah grinning like him, but his grin quickly died when he glanced towards the dairy farm.

Feeling a stone drop to the depths of his gut, Rex followed his line of sight to find another two EVO cows rearing up and getting ready to rumble.

Noah got them with the sleeping darts right after they galloped just a few yards. With a heavy thud, they collapsed on their sides, fallen to the heavy doses of anesthesia that Noah must have loaded into the gun.

Much to Rex's alarm, the faint blue tinge of the force field walls around another cage fell away without any noticeable frizzling of the device embedded on the ground. Rex frowned hard, immediately realizing that the EVO cows hadn't actually bust through the force field. Rather, someone had deliberately powered down the cages to release the beasts.

 _An inside traitor?_ Rex wondered in alarm, but didn't have time to ponder on it, as Noah was racing towards Rex with a troubled look on his face. Seeing Noah abandon the gun halfway, Rex understood why – he'd run out of tranquilizers.

"Noah! What are you doing? Get back inside to get more tranquilizers!" Rex yelled as he bounded towards Noah, catching his winded friend by the arm.

Noah panted lightly and crooked a brow in agitation.

"That was all that I could find."

Rex let out a grunt in annoyance, suspicions growing more intense by the second. Providence never ran out of supplies, so the fact that it had happened, meant that someone, had planned for this, choosing the time when Providence combat forces were all mobilized for mass field training and would leave the premises unguarded.

"Shit! Something wrong is going on here!" Rex cursed aloud.

"Yea, definitely. And that something is coming our way," Noah deadpanned.

Rex cursed again and pushed Noah out of the way.

"Get away from here, Noah!"

Then Rex dug deep inside himself to gather up as much nanites as he could, ordering their formation along his arms and down to his palms, erecting a sort of metal shield.

He braced himself for the impact, but was not strong enough to withstand the force of it when the EVO beast crashed into him. A horn punctured his defense, sliding into the gap between his arms, stopping just short of his chest, and he was pushed back several yards. Rex gritted his teeth, body straining from the effort. His feet ploughed into the dirt even though he empowered his boots.

He never felt more pathetic. This EVO was not even half the strength of Mega-Minotaur EVO from Strafield County, yet Rex could hardly hold his ground against it. He could feel his insides shaking, too weak, too tired –his nanites were just not at their full power yet.

Even so, he has to find a way to dig deeper.

 _Deeper!_

From the corner of his eyes, Rex caught sight of Noah dashing along the flank of the beast, drawing a lighted sabre against its belly.

The beast reared back and roared in pain, having been given electric shocks. The power was not enough render it unconscious, but it gave Rex some reprieve.

Just as Rex took a quick breather and rested his exhausted nanites, the EVO cow turned around to Noah and butted its head in his direction. Noah was quick to jump atop its horns, repeating his earlier trick, and ran up over its head and atop its spine to its back, jumping down to Rex's side.

"C'mon, Rex, what were you doing spacing out? I gave you the perfect opportunity to cure it!"

"I can't, if I do it, it speeds up the re-activiation, remember? Or didn't Holiday tell you that part? It gets faster every time," Rex pointed out.

Noah's lips pulled taut.

"Right. Then you'll need to knock them unconscious instead."

The EVO cow spun around to face them and manically thrashed its head side to side. Rex and Noah jumped aside to duck its dangerous horns swinging around.

"How about you ampt up the power on that thing?" Rex called out from the beast's side, ducking low to avoid a fatal puncture to his brains.

"I would have earlier, if I could. Anyway, I think the EVO cow is semi-shock resistant. You'll have to hit its head, hard," Noah answered back from the opposite side. He had also ducked low and aimed his intense gaze at Rex through the Beast's underbelly.

Rex tried not to let his anxiousness climb higher. But it was easier said than done.

Still, he has to do it –he brought out a mediocre-sized fist and slammed it into the EVO cow's side.

The beast teetered to the side a bit, but quickly recovered its balance, swinging its massive body sideways and knocking Rex over. Rex was winded, landing on his chest and sputtering into the dirt. He heaved, shaking all over, barely able to push himself off the ground.

 _Get up!_

He screamed to himself mentally, but he could hardly find the strength, even if the beast's shadow loomed menacingly over himself, about to bring its hooves down with crushing impact.

Noah screamed and charged into the beast's side with the electric sabre embedded into its flank, pushing the beast with such incredible strength that it stumbled sideways, roaring cries of displeasure.

"Rex! What the hell were you doing? It was going to crush you!"

Rex bit his lip and cursed inwardly under Noah's scolding.

It was frustrating –to have become so weak in the span of two weeks. And he knows exactly why.

Even if he had actually already fully recovered and was considered medically fit, his dispirited disposition caused his nanites to move sluggishly, and operate at a level much below their usual strength.

Why his nanites were so in sync with his emotions was something that Providence scientist had yet to fully understand. Caesar had briefly explained before that it had something to do with the human-to-machine interface of the synergy of his mind and the omega-one inside him. Constant flow of communication between his neurons and the electrical receptors of the omega-one might have left a conscious imprint on the microscopic weapon. This meant that it was powered on Rex's willpower.

And since Rex had been moody and in such turmoil over the relapse EVOs, he didn't have it within him to raise a fight. What good were his nanites against these newly developed ones? If what Rex had put into his all to deactivate all active nanites in the world, could be reactivated and reprogrammed to best him, then what good were his abilities? What help could he really offer?

"Rex! Get up and fight!" Noah yelled in frustration, winded as he jumped from side to side to avoid the beast's horns. "Don't leave me fighting by myself! Rex!"

Rex jolted, suddenly snapped awake with new eyes. Here Noah was, an ordinary guy – no formal combat training, no EVO powers – yet he was trying his best to fight against something bigger than himself. Noah would have no way of curing these EVO relapses either, and between the two of them, Rex was the one who had the power to pack a bigger punch.

Rex gritted his teeth, fingers digging into the dirt, getting more upset with himself. This wasn't the time for him to be lost. He was done, sitting around moping.

With a deep breath, he plucked himself up from the ground and focused his energies, his thoughts – clearing away all uncertainties, all doubts, all the shit that troubled him and weighed him down these days –none of that was important anymore. Right here, right now, Noah needed him, demanded for him to fight with him.

Damn, how could Rex ever leave his wingman to shoulder the battle alone?

 _C'mon Omega… help me._

In the rush, Rex could feel the familiar swarm of energy buzzing inside him, as his nanites swelled within, multiplying by millions, trillions, forced to their peak in a few blinks of an eye.

His blood become hot, electrified, bubbling with a surge of energy seeking for an outlet. He guided them –those torrential nanites –leading them to his arms, and letting them burst through his skin like a dam burst.

Flexible metal whips that nanites have formed over his lower arms, charged forwards towards the EVO cow. Even though his whips elongated, Rex was still connected to every single one of his nanites. He could feel the rush of movement of the swarm that kept multiplying itself in order to fill the gap between him and the beast, and the strong yet flexible interlocking bond formed between each and every nanite.

Whitish blue fire that was electricity charged forwards in a spiraling path round his nanite whips, racing neck to neck to reach his target. Once met, there was no stopping Rex's power. On command, his nanite whips encircled the EVO cow in a chilling embrace, while steaks of white and blue crackled over the beast's skin.

The beast let out a strangled cry before falling over, unconscious. Its' electrical resistance was no match for the shock power that Rex had generated.

Rex heaved a slow and deep sigh, inwardly willing his nanites to calm down. Electrified and touched by hot fire, his nanites still swelled with energy, and it was almost too much to bear after days of near-empty power. Now, batteries recharged and fuelled, Rex could hardly contain the sudden surge of power he felt.

It was a feeling he missed all too well and was such a wonder how he'd nearly lost it for days.

"Rex! You did it!" Noah came flying to him, arms closed around his shoulders, breathing relief down his neck.

Senses heightened since his nanites were charged and in fight mode, Rex became ultra-sensitive at such close contact. Chest touching, Rex could feel every thud of Noah's frantically pulsing heart and feel the lungs expand and contract within his ribcage. And he could feel the hot blood racing beneath Noah's skin and taste the moist, salty smell in the air radiating off Noah that was unique to him. The sensations were so raw, so strong, that it were as if Rex was a second skin over Noah, functioning like an organ attuned to him.

Rex had never told Noah this of course, since it sounds really creepy and weird no matter how he tried to slice it. Furthermore, Rex found it secretly comforting, addicting, almost, though he never really understood why. He surmised it was just the thrill of having his buddy close by.

They had always been able to work well together, functioning like a single unit, so it seemed right to Rex that he had such a deep connection with Noah's bodily signals.

The fact that Noah was able to draw Rex to kick back into full, battle mode, just proves how much Rex relied on Noah. Rex never expected to be able to draw so much of his original power back so quickly.

"Thanks buddy," Rex breathed softly, returning the hug, digging his fingers into Noah's back.

Perhaps it would look strange to others –two guys hugging the middle of the desert canyon, standing over a fallen mutated cow. But these types of things were the norm in Rex's crazy life.

 _Noah._

Rex breathed deeply, inhaling Noah's scent, and suddenly felt heady. It was probably just the thrill of recovering to his full nanite capabilities. But somehow, Rex knew it was something more than that.

 _God damn. Noah._

It was Noah. having him here, helped him regain his energy. Rex can't imagine what would happen if his best friend weren't here.

So all that Rex wanted, was to hold onto Noah and never let him go –until the ground started shaking again.

They pulled apart, jolted by that dreaded thundering. Three beasts were released this time, and the beasts had similar anger issues as the earlier lot.

Rex and Noah exchanged dreaded looks, then smirked, ready for another round.

* * *

Late afternoon, Rex was a storm cloud as he charged through Providence hallways towards the main control room. Noah was steps behind him, trying but failing to calm Rex down.

"You've got some damn explaining to do, assholes!"

Rex slammed the sides of the doorframe after the automatic doors slid open.

As he had guessed, Six and even Captain Callan was there, watching a replay of the footage of Rex's and Noah's fight with the EVO cows earlier that was taken by the security cameras outside the building.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on.

"A mass field training exercise, huh? If there really was one, why the hell are the two of you still here?"

What was worse, Dr. Rhodes and even his older brother, was there. All of them ganging up together to put him and Noah in a suicidal position.

Captain Callan perched one hand on his hips and dared to give a small smile.

"Well, well, we were found out."

Rex felt like plummeting that unremorseful face but Calan held out a hand in defense.

"Look, you went through the corridors so surely you must notice how empty the place is. There _really_ is a mass exercise, just that Hutton is taking charge over there."

"I don't care about that!" Rex yelled, temples throbbing in his head as he stalked towards them. "All I know is that the two of you, or rather, all of you, were trying to kill me and Noah – _continuously_! Just how many EVO cows do you intend to release until you're satisfied?"

Rex swept a hand in an arc before him at all the accused.

"Look, Mijo," Caesar started, taking a step towards Rex, "I know this looks bad, but –"

"Until your biometrics are back a hundred percent," Six answered coolly, pushing his glasses up on his nose ridge.

Rex felt his temples throb harder.

Contrary to what Holiday claimed, those EVO cows didn't smash their way out the force field cages. From what Rex had seen, the cages were powered down, allowing the EVO cows to escape. And there was no way that those force field cages would just power down one by one because of a power fault.

Rex initially thought that a traitor could be behind it, but it made totally no sense to release the EVO cows in twos and threes. If that someone really wanted to end him, they would release all the beasts at once.

The whole thing was fishy and after Rex spied one of the providence agents simply watching him from the upper floor without making any move to help, he immediately knew that the officers were ordered not to interfere.

And orders, came from top down.

Even if Providence upper ranks were desperate to have their trump card return to full battle power, Rex couldn't believe how low they'd stoop to do it. It was one thing to force him to raise his nanite levels to fight. But it was crossing the line to endanger his best friend as well.

He couldn't believe that even Holiday would get in on the act and trick him like this. and here he thought, these people were his family. He hated having this conflicting argument occurring from time to time – what was he really to Holiday, to Six, to these starkly dressed people he'd lived with nearly his whole life?

 _Just a weapon?_

Rex wanted to explode.

"The hell to that!" Noah exploded behind Rex before he could, rushing past him to stand toe to toe with Six.

"Listen, Rex is not some damn _weapon_ for you guys to treat him as you see fit, alright? Don't you care about what he thinks? How he feels? About how he could get injured?"

Rex balled his eyes in surprise, amazed how Noah had said his exact sentiments.

"I'm sorry, this is all my fault," Dr. Rhodes said shakily, "This was all my idea. I thought that to get you out of your slump, we had to create a scenario where you'll be forced to increase your nanite power."

She shook her head slowly, looking a bit regretful.

"But I never meant to hurt you, or Noah. I suppose you think this was selfish of us, and that we didn't take your opinion, or welfare into consideration, but _please_ believe me, we did what we believed would help you. We were all really worried about you, especially Holiday, and she helped me convince Six and Captain Callan that this might be the only way."

"Stop bullshitting," Rex threw a hand out in frustration, "You may say that, but really, all you're really worried about is about losing your most powerful weapon, isn't it?"

The slap to his face came so unexpectedly, that Rex didn't have time to block it.

Caesar, _his brother_ , had _slapped_ him.

Rex was so shocked that he remained in a daze, unable to react.

He cradled his face as he turned slowly to face the angry eyes of his brother.

Caesar was livid. Rex couldn't ever remember Caesar being angry at him. Then all of a sudden, Caesar hugged him, catching Rex off guard again.

Caesar, the science-obsessed man that he was, who was oblivious to the sensitivities of others, always chose the oddest moments to reveal his feelings and show his affections.

"Of course Mijo, of course I'm worried about losing you, but not for the reason you think."

Caesar pulled back a bit and locked eyes with Rex, gaze so full of emotion that hit Rex like waves beating against his door, demanding to be let in.

"Don't you see, our parents and I, we made you the way you are, because we love you. If you are the most powerful thing in the world, then we'll never have to lose you. I know it's a weird way of putting it, but I had hoped you'd understand. Do you still doubt me, until this day?"

Rex bit his trembling lips, anger washed away by the tidal force of brotherly love.

Curse it. He was acting like an idiot again. Of course, Rex knew deep down that these people cared. How could he ever doubt his own brother, and people like Six and Holiday who had taken care of him for most of his life?

Rex had always hated to be seen like a weakling. But when he'd lost his drive for days, he also lost his pride so he didn't care to be seen moping around. What he hated more to reveal was how truly fragile he felt inside – just the lost kid running around trying to find himself and fit in, nary the same as he was when Six first found him.

He knows he should apologize, but he hated now to admit that all that yelling was just a temper tantrum, from a sorry little kid who hasn't really grown that much, who was afraid of being abandoned, of being lost, of being alone.

Instead, Rex buried his head into Caesar's shirt so no one could see the tears running down his cheeks.

To Caesar's credit, he didn't speak another word – he simply held Rex within his warm arms while he shooed the others out the control room with hand gestures.

It took quite a while before Rex finally calmed down. Rex came to terms that the team was really just trying to bring his spirits back up. Even if they had been sneaky about it and done it through force, it was all for the better. He did become more motivated, kicked his nanite levels back up, and besides, neither he nor Noah was seriously injured, so it ended well.

When Rex finally stopped sniffling and pushed himself off Caesar, he was a little embarrassed, since he had never acted like such a crybaby in front of his older brother before.

Much to his annoyance, Caesar had to go ruin the mood by lamenting in a wishful tone how this brought back memories of how Rex used to always run to him crying whenever he got injured or was upset about something.

"Shut up! Don't remind me lame stuff like that!" Rex exclaimed and quickly marched off, before he suddenly realized that all through this episode, one crucial person was missing.

"Hey, Caesar, where's Holiday? I thought she would be here too since Rhodes said… you know."

"Oh, Dr. Holiday went to take a rest."

"A rest?" Rex was immediately concerned as that didn't sound like what a workaholic like her would do, "Is she sick?"

"No, she's fine –it's just fatigue. Though you should know, she was so anxious that you boys would get hurt. She was really persistent to stay and watch the both of you even though she nearly stumbled –twice – because of lack of sleep. Six nearly had to force a command on her before she agreed to retire early for the day.

She has been burying herself neck up with research on the nanites, and concerning herself with you, you know? She's really admirable –that woman –I bet she'll make an excellent additional to my travelling team."

Then Caesar was off continuing his conversation even when it was obvious that Rex stopped listening. Rex suddenly became hung up with guilt – no matter how busy Holiday was, she never failed to check up on him at the medical bay and still worried herself over him. Perhaps if he had gotten his spirits back up earlier, Holiday wouldn't expend as much energy and could focus more on her work.

Yet she split her concentration and even put effort in taking up Dr. Rhodes' suggestions in hopes that it would help him. On that thought, Rex recalled Dr. Rhodes' words and asked Caesar what made them all so sure that the plan would work.

"It was obvious – your nanite count naturally spiked whenever you were fighting. Besides, we threw Noah in the mix as an added stimulus," Caesar explained smilingly.

"What? So Noah knew about this too?" Rex was doubtful, knowing from the way Noah acted that he was completely taken by surprise over the earlier incident as well.

"Oh no, no," Caesar shook his head, "He was kept in the dark too. We had another plan at first, but since the both of you snuck out, we thought to take the opportunity and came up with this impromptu plan. And voilà, it worked!"

Rex was irritated by the somewhat proud face that Caesar was wearing. But seeing as to how Caesar and the rest had been genuinely concerned for him, he couldn't stay mad.

"Well, we _are_ best friends, so I'd definitely jump into the fray for him. I guess it was a pretty good call from you guys too."

Caesar laughed lightly.

"Well yes, mostly that. But partly, it was also in Hutton's and Captain Callan's interest to 'test' Noah, since he apparently skipped Basic for close to a week just to keep you company at the medical bay, right? At least, that's what I overheard."

Rex tensed then shook his head in a resigned manner.

"I see, so I guess that was part of his 'punishment', huh?" Rex's lips twitched at the corners, not really sure what to make of their apparent 'interest' in Noah. Captain Callan seemed to have singled out Noah since the incident at the oil rig. And Hutton was the type to be harshest on the cadets with the most potential, only because he knows they can take it –and Noah was one resilient guy.

Caesar laughed, an eyebrow crooked in an amused manner.

"If you asked me, that really wasn't so much a 'punishment' at all. But it certainly does make one discover new things."

Then Caesar wore this amused look that was discomforting in a way, and was a look that Rex had never seen on his brother before.

"What do you mean by that?" Rex asked, getting a sort of weird feeling that he couldn't quite place.

Caesar only laughed harder.

"Come, let's have dinner tonight. Then you'll understand."

Dinner was quite an embarrassing, private affair –just Rex and Caesar, dining in the research pod, having seafood spaghetti cooked using Caesar's strange apparatus. But never mind how weird and suspicious it looked – the food turned out tasting fabulous.

It'd been too long since just the two of them got together so Rex nearly forgot how it felt like having a meal with a blood kin. It was very, very warm, and poignant, and just… embarrassing, somehow.

Rex wasn't used to such moments of closeness with his brother, though of course, he secretly really appreciated it.

Even Caesar's oddball moments like suddenly setting out a third plate and portion, after a little while into their meal, was incredibly funny and endearing to Rex.

"Got a last minute guest huh, bro?" Rex joked, cocking a brow.

Caesar gave an embarrassed laugh.

"Yea, actually, I almost forgot, I'd invited a guest."

Rex was a little surprised, thinking that it was just a meal between the both of them.

"Well, who?"

Caesar gave a sly wink.

"Someone special."

Rex nearly choked and suddenly grew nervous. Looking around, Rex realized the whole private set up, the rudimentary electric lamps on the table –not classy like candles but still an eclectic touch of ardor, the odd looking flowers – even if they were carnivorous plants, seemed something right out of his favorite Spanish soap opera drama. It was the perfect setting to introduce a family member's flame – at least, that was how it usually played out on TV.

Which was a hard reality to grasps as well –did Caesar even looked at women? He was only ever interested in his research, right? But this definitely has to be the prelude to Rex meeting the love of his older brother's life. It has to. Six years of soap drama tells him so.

A knock on the door sent Rex straightening in his chair, suddenly nervous.

Was it someone he knew? God! He was meeting his brother's _future_ wife –he gotta give a good impression!

"Um, Caesar?"

 _A man's voice?_

"Ahh, you're here, finally, good, good, come in and join us."

Rex was suddenly disorientated.

 _Brother's lover is a man?_

The unoiled metal door creaked noisily as the guest entered, footsteps resounding across the short corridor before he appeared with Noah's face.

Rex blinked.

 _Brother's lover is Noah?_

Rex took a sharp intake of breath to kill his amazingly insane, stupid thoughts. What kind of mental rambling was that?

 _Of course not!_

Noah gave a sort of confused, sheepish smile, scratching the back of his head.

"Uh, wow, it's awkward to say this, but you two look like you're having the perfect family dinner. Are you sure it's okay for me to intrude?"

"Nonsense, this family dinner includes you, Noah. You're the closest to Rex, aren't you? That makes you almost like our family."

Noah gave a huge grin.

"Um, thanks Caesar," Noah said, then took a seat next to Caesar, opposite Rex.

Suddenly deflated, Rex gave a huge sigh.

"What, if it's just Noah, just say so. Why call him a 'guest' and make it sound so secretive? I thought it was someone really special or something."

Caesar wore that amused, unfathomable expression again.

"But he is, isn't he? He's my little brother's most _special_ friend, the one who helped you earlier, today. I just want to thank him for that."

Rex didn't know why, but Caesar gave Noah a pointed look that visibly made Noah nervous.

In fact, Noah blushed, just a faint dusting of red across his light cheeks.

Rex frowned, wondering if there was something that he missed, but he never got the chance to ask because Caesar launched into recounting his favourite memories of having dinner with Rex when he was small, that included a bunch of really embarrassing parts that annoyed the hell out of Rex.

Even so, Rex really enjoyed himself and had a lot of laughs while playfully bantering with both his brother and Noah. Before he knew it, they were done with dinner and had talked into the wee hours of the night till they had to retire for sleep.

So by then, Rex had completely forgotten that he had never got around to finding out what Caesar had meant earlier about Noah, and discovering new things.

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

 **Amelia *Rhodes :**

Appears in Season 1 gravity as Doctor Rhodes. I just gave 'Amelia' as her first name. She's an English Providence scientist. When the space station was hacked by Zag RS, she was accidently sucked out into space. But later on at the end, it was revealed that she was still alive and was rescued.

I decided to include her to continue her role as Holiday's assistant. Plus, I wanted to add more characters to the Science team in addition to Holiday. And she also has a *special* role to play…. Heehee…which you will discover later ^_^

 ***fell into the reactor:**

In season 1, "Dark Passage" Dr. Gabriel Rylander pulled Van Kleiss into a reactor and supposedly died. However, Caesar was somehow able to partially re-assimilate Rylander on a molecular level. It was not a complete success though, so he's left without his physical form.


	10. Old Habits Die Hard

Thanks Bramblerose4 for your encouragement, as always! Will try my best to make this enjoyable for everyone and complete it as fast as I can! =D

* * *

 **Chapter Ten: Old Habits Die Hard**

(Autumn. Noah's last semester starts. Rex and Noah gets a surprise invitation)

* * *

"Oh, and by the way, Noah," *Annie called aloud, facing where the bathroom was.

"I got you an extra copy of Rock 'N' Sass – you might want to look at it. They've devoted three pages to 'How to rein in the guy of your dreams', then maybe, you'll finally be able to get –Rex!" Annie exclaimed when she turned around to grab her tote bag from the couch.

Rex got in through the room window on an early evening, silent as a mouse since he was on his Slyder, so Annie never noticed.

Noah's summer vacation was over so he was back in his dorms. Hence, Rex was back to flitting between two places in between his missions, like usual. But unlike before, Rex didn't mind it so much now. In fact, he preferred to sleep over Noah's room over the weekends.

He wanted to stay away as much as possible from the endless mooing and stomping of heavy hooves in the recent, makeshift dairy farm that Providence had procured. Since Rex's room had recently been renovated to fit a large window, those EVO cows were now his daily, morning rooster and god damn it –how he hated them.

They were his daily reminder of his failure.

Holiday and her team in the science department were doing everything they could to study the nanite samples from the EVO cows and the REAS subjects. Caesar and his team stayed for as long as they could, until they had to leave or else they'd miss the 'amazing, once in a decade phenomenon' –that is, according to Rylander. But whatever that was, neither of the three travelling scientist had properly explained it, so Rex just chucked it as another one of the mysterious projects that they were unhealthily obsessed with. Right at the end of summer, the three of them returned to the research pod and zipped off to god-knows some exotic location.

In all honesty, Rex would rather Caesar stayed behind to focus his full attention on the relapse cases. Caesar was a genius in nanite research so Rex was sure he could greatly help Providence Science department. Both Holiday and Amelia had also requested Caesar to stay behind to help. However, Caesar had 'reluctantly' declined, citing that there were many more important discoveries to make, hence he had to continue travelling the world. However, he assured that he would continue his studies on the new nanites while travelling, and contact Providence on his progress, for which, Rex was glad to hear. True to his words, Caesar frequently checked in with Holiday and her team of scientists, exchanging notes and theories.

For Rex, uncovering the scientific mysterious of the relapse cases were beyond him. He only knew to turn to what he always knew how to do –to link with the nanites in those bodies and deactivate them. But given that it was important for him to know how to deal with these new nanites, Rex would pop by the science lab more often, listening in on the team's debates.

Over video calls, Caesar often expressed his fascination over the adaptive abilities of these improved nanites, though troubling as it were. Holiday, on the other hand, didn't take it quite enthusiastically. Most of the time, she looked really stressed and Rex could swear she frowned twice as much as she did while working, which was unusual as Holiday was normally composed and had a pleasant mood at work.

More often than not, Holiday was also tardy, turning up at the science lab much later than everyone else does, which was virtually unheard of. She took breaks often too, leaving Amelia behind to take charge. Rex grew worried and often asked if she was okay, but Holiday would only brush it off as being stressed about the nanite problem.

Rex then finally made her promise him not to push herself too hard, and to rest if she needs to. Holiday gave a candid laugh when he said that and gave him an endearing look, saying that he has grown up a lot to be saying what she'd used to say to him.

Then she had a faraway look in her eye when she added that Six had made her promise the same thing, which was exactly why she took so many breaks in between work – so she could rest. Rex honestly wasn't very intuitive when it came to reading women, but somehow, he got the sense that there was something very, very different in Holiday's face right there and then, though he couldn't place it. Hence, he chalked it up as him over imagining things.

"Now, why would Noah be interested in stuff like that?" Rex waggled his eyebrows as he gingerly sat on the opposite end, careful not to crease the blazer that he'd taken without permission, from Six's wardrobe.

"I was just joking," Annie waved a hand in dismissal.

"Anyway, what's with the suit?" she asked, checking him out from head to toe.

"Got a concert to attend tonight. How about you? I see you're ready for a night about town," Rex pointed out, returning the gesture, but politely avoided staring at her incredible plunging neckline.

She was usually cute with her bob haircut, spaghetti top or turtleneck matching pleated skirt or checkered capri pants. Now, she was almost a one-eighty, in a black mini dress so short that he was sure it would ride up her bum if she tried to bend over.

She was hot, but well, not like Rex was gonna tell her. It was just one of those compliments that would sound awkward since they had double dated more times than he could remember, alongside Noah and Claire, yet never actually got together. Besides the fact that she being a natural jinx was a major discouragement, he didn't feel any chemistry with her, and he was sure that she probably felt the same.

"Snazzy, but why the sudden interest? I thought you were into rock bands, like *Beverly's," she asked as she pulled out the magazine she was talking about earlier and laid it on the counter.

"It's an invitation from *Gabe and Michael –you remember them? They were Noah's biggest competition in tennis in Junior High."

"Oh," she raised both brows as she sat down next to him, "you mean that epic EVO battle where you guys nearly crashed the roof of the school gym?"

Rex laughed and nodded.

"Yea, that's the one."

"Oh yeah, now that I remember it, they took up piano after that, didn't they? Kinda surprising that they've made it out so big. I heard one of my pals in a music course mention it before. I think they'd won some award last year for their classical album."

"Woa, I didn't know that. Guess it's cool they invited us to their concert."

"Us?" Annie repeated with a questioning look, then made a small sigh, "Oh no, you mean you and Noah?"

"Yea, Noah didn't tell you?" Rex said with brows raised, "I left him like, a hundred messages."

"He was probably too busy to check his phone. He never said anything about it to me," she folded her arms and sank down lower into the couch. "Damn, so you only have two tickets, not three, right?"

Rex gave an apologetic smile.

"I'm guessing you've already made plans with Noah, huh?"

She looked at him crossly and jabbed his arm with a finger.

"Duh, why else would I bother to wait for him to finish his shower?" she lamented then let out a forceful breath, blowing her fringe up slightly.

"Why didn't you say anything earlier? Or did you get the tickets late?"

"Only this morning –I mean, not like they knew where Providence address was, nor Noah's. So they sent the invitation tickets through Providence email, which took like forever for main control to tell me," Rex explained and was quite surprised to see her annoyed.

Rex did have a tendency to drop in at the last minute, in between missions. When Noah was coincidently free, they'd hang out, or Rex would bum around waiting inside Noah's room. Sometimes, he crashed in on Noah and Annie's plans, but she never seemed to mind, and the three of them would hang out.

"Besides, I rang like a hundred times. You could have at least picked it up."

"Nope," Annie said sharply, "I never touch his phone."

The way she said it was as if Noah had wired a bomb inside that would blow up if anyone else touched it."

"Why not? It could have been an emergency."

Rex was surprised a nosy person like Annie would refrain from the few dozen calls he'd made on his flight here.

Annie suddenly gave a horrified look, like she knew something terrible that Rex didn't.

"Because I would have contaminated my mind and ruined my appetite."

Curiosity spiked, Rex got up, went round the back of the couch towards the side table where Noah's phone was. But before he reached for it, Annie smacked his hand away.

"You better don't," she warned, "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Rex gave an amused look. Now, how could Rex resist it when she puts it like that? But before he could pick it up, Noah's voice came from the back.

"Annie, is there someone there? I thought I heard voices –Rex! Woa, I didn't know you were gonna drop by."

Rex turned, wanting to show him the two printed tickets, then his jaw promptly fell open at Noah's outfit, eyes nearly popping out his sockets.

He was just out the shower, still toweling dry his hair in a black tank top, so tight that it seemed melded onto his body, showing every contour of his sporty physique. And his pants –god, they were leather, wrapped snuggly around his legs.

 _He could move in that?_

"Holy shit, what is this? A couple get up?" Rex said in dry humor, eyes balling, staring between Noah and Annie.

He had never seen Noah in anything like this before. Sure, he'd seen Noah in various types of costume and get up in his college performances –some casual, some tacky, some cool and awesome and others downright hilarious. But this –a darn hot outfit that screams 'Sex God' to every woman on earth –was the first.

 _Crap, I didn't just think that Noah is hot,_ Rex thought to himself dryly. But he had to admit, even from a guy's perspective, Noah looked the type that would be popular with women, which he was.

His platinum blond hair and clear blue eyes was a pretty common feature, but somehow, combined with the angles and panes of his face, it gave Noah a fine-looking, guy-next-door look.

Besides, Noah did have distinct features that Rex felt set him apart from all the others. Noah's eyebrows were fairly thick, sitting in a nearly horizon line above deep set eyes, with just the slightest arch and sloped outwards at just the smallest angle. Coupled with his bright irises and expressive, doe-like eyes, it sort of painted a sublime portrait.

And besides being a looker, Noah was charismatic and had a certain appeal with the way he walks and talks. Rex had witnessed many times how the other students on campus were simply drawn to him, like the way Rex also was.

Annie snorted, then replied, "We were planning to head to a new club in Brooklyn, 'Staizer', opened in the last few months."

"Woa, Brooklyn's nearly two hours by the subway, isn't it?"

"Yea, but I've heard some friends say it's worth checking out."

"Sounds cool, then maybe the both of you should just go ahead," Rex said causally, trying to hide his disappointment.

Not like he was big on classical music anyway –just that he'd thought it'd be nice to attend one just once.

Noah gave him a puzzling look.

"Doesn't matter, Rex, the three of us could always head elsewhere. Maybe a movie? There's this new horror film that came out recently that I wanna watch."

Rex shook his head.

"Nah, I've got plans of my own," Rex unveiled the two tickets from his pocket and waved them in the air, "Tickets to Gabe's and Michael's concert –they specifically invited us. I was planning on asking you, but I guess I can still enjoy it on my own."

"Woa, seriously? Far out man. I haven't spoken to them in ages. Can't believe they remember us."

"Yea, _sweet_ aren't they?" Annie said in an exaggerated saccharine tone, eyebrows wagging, "That's why you gotta suit up too."

Rex didn't miss her sarcasm, and wondered if she was jealous. But it couldn't be, right? Unless Annie was actually harboring a crush for Noah and Rex never noticed.

Then, she got up from the couch and walked over to the counter to get herself a drink. Rex raised a concerned brow at Noah, chin nodding towards her back.

Noah caught his wordless meaning and gave a rueful smile.

"Annie's been looking forward to hitting Staizer for weeks. She had been too busy with school before, and she can't go to clubs alone," Noah whispered.

"What? Why?"

"Her mom doesn't allow it. Says she has to bring a guy with her –specifically me. And she calls to check that she does."

"What?" Rex exclaimed softly, "Who the hell needs a chaperone at _our_ age? And why _you_?"

Suddenly, there was an usually loud sound of fire igniting from an electrical stove at the same time that the lights died. Rex spun round in alarm and vaguely made out the flames dancing along the cooking device.

Then white fumes spewed from a small can that Noah vigorously sprayed all over, extinguishing the flames. Annie was closest and she coughed and fanned the thick white smog from her face. Crisis averted, Noah crossed the dim room to the far side and toggled the main electrical switchboard that had tripped. The room lights flickered once, twice, then remained lighted steady.

Noah stared in chagrin at the blackened electrical stove and went over to inspect it.

Rex turned his attention to Annie who looked annoyed.

"Hey Annie, you okay? Did you get burnt?" Rex asked.

"Luckily, no," she said blandly, then shook her head, sighing, "But Noah, you _seriously_ have to think about replacing your electrical appliances. It just caught fire for no reason."

Noah exchanged looks with Rex then they both cracked up.

"Well, true that, but at least, that was some nice save, Noah," Rex praised in between laughs, wiping a tear from his eyes.

"I've had enough practice," Noah replied dryly, prompting Rex to laugh harder, much to Annie's annoyance.

Annie rolled her eyes.

"Again? Laughing like two idiots –I don't see the joke here."

Rex could barely pause to answer, or even catch his breath. It was funny that even up to now, Annie never realized her supernatural powers of causing accidents. Rex remembered the *first time he double dated with her and Noah with Claire, during Noah's junior prom.

Rex got so aghast with one accident after another, that he nearly waved the white flag, if it were not for the sake of his best friend and promising to help Noah have the best prom ever. Since then, he had one horror account after the other every time that they double dated.

Good thing they double dated less as Claire and Noah got closer, and eventually, Noah stopped roping him along once he and Claire were an official item.

The funny thing was, even after Noah and Claire broke up, Annie and Noah remained close friends. Rex was aware that Noah has a big circle of friends, and though he doesn't really know all of them, he knows that Annie was one of Noah's closest pals.

And since Annie was in a neighboring college majoring in forensic, she and Noah hung out often, enough that Noah learnt to be a complete pro at handling her mess ups like a slick, emergency savior.

Noah recovered from laughing first, and apologized sheepishly to Annie.

"I'll forgive you, but only if you guys ditch the funeral music and come with me to the club."

Noah suddenly gave her a pleading look that Rex recognized as the same one he gave during times when he was aghast with Rex's plans that he deemed too crazy for his taste.

"C'mon, Annie, have _mercy_ on me. I'll make it up to you another day, I promise."

Rex stared between the both of them and folded his arms.

"Why do I get the feeling that Noah doesn't want me along, clubbing?"

Noah looked uncomfortable at his comment and gave a nervous laugh.

"It's nothing, I just don't want you wasting a trip here and going to the concert alone. Besides, it'd be pretty rude if I didn't show up."

Annie heaved a heavy sigh then gave a defeated pout.

"Okay, okay, fine Noah. You win. But I'm booking you next week," she cast a warning glare in Rex's direction, "And Rex, you better don't come crashing in, unless you wanna get _mind fucked_."

Rex gave a humorless laugh and asked what her overly venomous warning meant.

Annie only gave him an evil, secretive smile as she picked up her tote bag and whizzed out the door.

"What was that all about?" Rex deadpanned, "I know she can get pretty feisty, but she hardly bites at us."

Noah shrugged.

"Dunno, guess we just pissed her off bad. Maybe she's on her period or something."

Rex frowned at Noah's dismissive answer. But before he could press further, Noah moved towards him and for a crazy moment, Rex imagined that Noah was aiming for his lips. Instead, Noah just brushed by him to pick up his phone from the side table.

Then Noah exploded.

"What the hell, Rex? A hundred texts? And over fifty calls?" Noah gave him a look of utter horror and distress, "C'mon, we've been through this. You're blowing up my incomings again. I told you just once is enough, or twice maximum. I will always check my phone when I'm free."

"Right, but you didn't. I've been trying to reach you since morning."

Noah gave an agitated sigh and dumped his towel onto the backrest of the couch.

"Yea, well, I forgot to check. I was busy finishing up my final year project. Then I hit the gym. Anyway, do you know many hours of shift work I have to pull to pay for my phone bill?"

Noah shot him a menacing look and Rex gave an apologetic look, feeling guilty.

"Right, sorry I went overboard. I know I tend to get a little impatient."

"A little?" Noah frowned harder.

Rex felt himself hunching smaller.

"Okay, a lot," he admitted, then continued in a small voice, "But I had nothing to do all day, except to press 'resend'."

Noah glared like he wanted to kill him.

Rex gave a timid laugh.

"So does this mean you are going to block my incomings from now on?"

Noah suddenly lost his pissed off look. Then a lopsided smile crept up on his face that told Rex Noah wasn't as mad as he thought he was.

"Of course not, idiot. Just don't do that again or I–"

"Kiss me?" The words fell out of Rex's lips before he could stop himself. He quickly straightened, mortified by his own word vomit. It was just that Noah had repeated a phrase like that for a few times now so Rex couldn't help second guessing and finishing his sentence.

Except that Rex had said 'me', instead of 'you', so it sounded weird, as if Rex was asking to be kissed.

 _What an idiotic thing to say!_

Thankfully, Noah didn't seem uncomfortable. Instead, he gave a comical grin and took three steps towards him, saying in an amused tone, "Whatever you say, Rex. Just don't gag."

And Rex knew in that instant they were going to kiss again. Something jolted inside Rex in anticipation, as if it had already become a familiar, welcome gesture.

This time, Noah touched their lips with just the lightest pressure, and just for the briefest of moments, before pulling away. Despite the strangeness of it all, Rex had that feel-good feeling he always had whenever Noah appeared, amplified.

They eyed each other, gaze leveled for a few unspoken seconds. Then suddenly, they both cracked up like their funny bones were tickled. Rex had to hand it to his best friend.

Only Noah could bring an awkward scenario to comedic turn. And only Noah was cool enough to do something embarrassing as two guy friends kissing, without fretting or making a big deal out of it.

"Right," Rex cleared his throat when he'd calmed down, "Now that you're done with teaching me not to give you another reason to kiss me, you should change out to something more suitable for the occasion."

Rex ignored the exaggerated snort from Noah and picked up the green suit he'd brought along in a bag for him.

Noah's snorts cut short and he gave a look of utter disdain at the suit Rex held out for him.

"Uh, no thanks, Rex, just one green guy showing up at the concert hall is enough."

"But green is soooo your color," Rex insisted.

"Only military green. And in parka," Noah specified, referring to the green bomber jacket he usually wore.

"C'mon Noah, I don't see you having any problems wearing couple colors with Annie."

"Rex," Noah said as he waved his hands around in an amused manner, "Two guys showing up in a green suit will look comedic."

"No way!" Rex protested jokingly, "It's unique! We'll stand out and steal the attention of a couple of debonair ladies."

Noah laughed.

"No thanks, I'll pass. I've got my own classy suit."

"Right, so you prefer to be in black like everyone else?"

"Yep, so only you will stand out."

"Dude, I always stand out."

Their playful bickering continued back and forth even whilst Noah got changed in the bathroom.

When Noah came out, Rex choked on his words and coughed at the one-eighty –Noah looked like a completely new man with his blonde hair slicked back and wearing a crisp, white shirt and black tuxedo. Rex would never admit it to his friend, but Noah was the perfect image of a suave, blue-blooded bachelor.

Noah smirked and tilted his head sideways, as if reading Rex's surprise at his transformation.

" _Jealous_ much?"

Rex frowned and felt himself flaring up at Noah's cocky demeanor. But his annoyance fizzled as quickly as it rose, knowing that Noah was right.

"Humph, green is the new black," Rex insisted stubbornly.

Noah chortled.

"Seriously, you should stop stealing Six's suit and go invest in a proper one of your own."

"It was borrowed," Rex clarified, even if in retrospect, he did take it without permission, "Besides, I don't exactly have enough money. My salary only covers for food and some basic stuff –you know that. So how am I supposed to get one?"

"Just ask for a bigger allowance."

It was Rex's turn to chortle.

"Go tell that to White Knight."

* * *

The performance auditorium was in an upscale part of New York City, with colonnades towering over two stories and a stylized mansard roof. It was early autumn, but the night air was already quite chilly, cool against Rex's face. It would get colder over the next two months but for now, his blazer was enough to keep Rex snug against the cold.

Rex and Noah arrived in good time, where it looked like majority of the guest were just pulling into the car park and relieving their fancy rides to the valet.

"Wow," Rex gushed at the number of people dressed to their nines, "Didn't know the twins are this famous. Look at this crowd, damn! I swear, they must all be made of money. Isn't that an A-list actress? And so is that guy – I recognize him."

Rex was wide-eyed, head twirling all around as he gawked at the parade of stars. Even if it wasn't a red carpet event, the paparazzi was swarming the place, begging the A-listers for a couple of photos. Some of their names were so big, they even over shadowed the supposedly world famous Rex, as none of the paparazzi even noticed him.

Not that he wasn't popular anymore, but the novelty of a Nanite Master hero has long worn off since those EVO-crisis days were over. And especially since the Consortium went into hiding three years ago, the action has simmered down considerably, putting Rex less in the spotlight.

Rex didn't really care for that though, and was glad he wasn't hounded by the news crew. He didn't mind a little attention, and sure, it was nice to be popular and have fans shrieking his name and crying tears of joy, thanking him at his feet. But he didn't enjoy it all the time. He used to have to suffocate within crowds of fans and the paparazzi when public interest in him was at its peak. It was terribly daunting, though of course, Rex was too proud to admit that to anyone, so most of the time, he just squashed his discomfort to the bottom of his belly and pretended to bask in the limelight. In truth, he much preferred to be able to walk the street like he could now, and not get any attention at all.

Noah elbowed Rex slightly, tearing his attention from the A-listers.

"C'mon Rex, keep it together man. Stop looking like a goldfish," Noah chided as he adjusted the lapel of his tux. "It's not like you're not famous yourself."

Even if Noah said that, Rex could tell that Noah was equally impressed and excited to be so close the actors and actresses, as his gaze flitted everywhere.

"Yea but I'm no TV star! I mean, just look at them!" Rex exclaimed and went on listing all those he knew and spotted.

Noah nodded his head excitedly as Rex ratted on, then pointed out a handful of other stars famous in Broadway and Opera, whom Rex hadn't known.

"I see you're well informed, as usual," Rex praised.

Noah grinned. "Hey, the arts and entertainment is my kinda thing. Besides, I'll be in the trade soon, so it pays to know."

"Right, glad I know you before you're famous. Maybe that's how I'll get money for my suit –sell a couple of juicy details about your life before the fame, to some gossip magazines," Rex joked.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," Noah lamented in humor and laughed.

They leisurely crossed the lawn with carefully maintained hedges and flowerbeds while Noah continued talking about who's who. As they reached the marble stairs, Rex observed something rather peculiar.

"Uh, Noah, is it just me? Or do I see everyone here in pairs? Like, couples?" Rex asked, nudging Noah's arm with his elbow, "Everyone's got someone on their arm like an accessory."

Noah gave him a look of disbelief.

"Well, duh, since they're playing love ballads. The list is written all at the back of the ticket, didn't you read it?"

"Oh, well, I did, but how would I know? I'm not a maestro, nor in theatre studies like you."

"Well, now you know," Noah said, then paused and glanced back at Rex who'd stopped walking, "Why? Don't tell me you are having second thoughts now. C'mon, I know you've avoided watching romance movies since your break-up, but these will be instrumentals –you wouldn't be able to tell anyway."

Rex shook his head.

"Oh no, no, just that I'm wondering if we should follow suit," Rex joked.

Noah suddenly gave a mischievous smile, eyes twinkling.

"Well, now that you mention it, why not?" Noah cocked his brow and lifted an arm to him, "Shall we?"

Rex could barely contain a straight face as he took up Noah's arm, lightly wrapping his fingers around Noah's biceps before they made their way indoors, stunning all those they passed by. Cameras started flashing behind them – no doubt those news vultures had caught sight of such gossip-worthy material. But Rex didn't care – not like Noah's face had been snapped and besides, lots of magazines had already paired Rex with all sorts of people, most of whom he hadn't even met.

After they turned into the corridor, away from the prying eyes of the media who were kept outside, the both of them dropped arms and crackled, softly recounting the comical stares that they got.

Only after they'd calmed down, did they enter the plush, mahogany and marble laid concert hall, letting an usher show them to their seats, which was roughly smack in the center. They chatted as they waited for the performance to begin, which was in another half an hour or so. The lights above the seating dimmed to allow better spotlight on the stage. A hush fell over the audience, so Rex and Noah followed suit. Everyone held their silence expectantly for the stars of the show to appear.

When Gabe and Michael finally marched into view from both sides of the stage, Rex made the mistake of clapping. Noah quickly gripped his hands to stop him and gave him a harsh whisper that it wasn't polite to applause until the interlude or the end.

"But it's such a weird practice," Rex protested, but listened anyway.

As the twins took seat side by side at the piano, Rex couldn't help but burst into laughter and got a few annoyed looks from the people seated around him, Noah included.

"Sorry," Rex said softly, then quietly murmured to Noah about what had tickled him.

Even though the twins were already cured, their bodies remained big and bulking, testament to their rigorous sports training and protein shakes given by their demanding father. They seemed to dwarf the piano, as if they were two giants playing with a toy instrument.

Noah got his joke and laughed too, but softer, muffling it with his hand.

For the rest of the concert, Rex kept reminding Noah about the past tennis competition, tickling him to laugh. Noah kept chiding Rex to quit joking as it was rude. But he ended up snickering softly under his breath alongside Rex. Rex knew that they really should be paying attention to the performance, but he couldn't resist tempting Noah. His buddy looked so comical trying to hold back his laughter whilst looking suitably chastised when the other guests gave them pointed stares.

"Oh no, shit! We were too noisy. Look, the usher is coming over!" Noah suddenly panicked halfway, elbowing Rex violently in his gut.

"See, I told you to keep your mouth shut!" Noah shot him an accusing glare, as if it were his fault.

"What? You were laughing along with me too!"

"Yea, and now we're going to get thrown out for being bad audiences."

Contrary to what they thought, the usher was only delivering a message, telling them that the twins wanted to speak with them privately, backstage after the show.

Rex and Noah relaxed after that, but Noah ignored Rex the rest of the performance, which ended on a grand climax of pulsating rhythm and glorious melody that even Rex could shut up long enough in appreciaion.

"Wow, that was actually good. Glad I sat all the way through it," Rex said humorously as he stood up and waited for the rest of the guests in the row to file out.

"You're unbelievable. Let me guess, you were this noisy and inattentive during my performances too, right? I'm never going to invite to watch any of my plays in future," Noah muttered with displeasure.

"What?" Rex lamented, "But you have to! Your performances are great. Believe me, I'm all eyes and ears watching you. It's just this instrumental concert is really not my thing –too boring."

"But you wanted to come here in the first place!" Noah argued back.

They followed after the other guests in their row, edging slowly towards the side aisle, squabbling all the way.

Once they passed the outermost seat of that row, their little squabble was interrupted by the usher who was already waiting for them. He led them the way backstage, to the twin's private dressing room.

Noah forgot all about being annoyed with Rex the moment they met the twins.

The dressing room was posh, with lush carpets, velvet lined couches and teak dressers. It was large too, even so, the room didn't seem nearly large enough to encompass the bulky forms of the twins.

Noah strode into the room and shook their hands, quickly launching into exaggerated praises about their performance. Rex clapped them on their backs to congratulate them for their success as well.

Gabe and Michael were all smiles, beaming and looking slightly embarrassed by the compliments. They invited Rex and Noah for a seat on the semi-circular couch at the center of the room. The twins took seat at the other end of the couch so they were facing Rex and Noah.

Noah continued bombarding them with questions on their road to success. Rex chuckled, seeing that Noah was genuinely interested, chattering excitedly like he'd become a fan after the show. The twins shared some of their stories, but soon changed the subject, turning onto Noah and Rex instead.

As they caught up with one another, Rex was glad that they could have a pleasant talk. He was a tad worried at first that it might be awkward since it had been years since they met at the table tennis Junior High state championship. They weren't even friends to being with –just adversaries in sports that came to a mutual thanks when Rex got accidently dragged into their family matters and helped them out a strangling situation.

Since then, their father had stopped forcing them into sports and let them pursue their dream of being world-class pianists, which looked to have come true now.

Just as he was really enjoying himself, laughing at their jokes and stories about how their father continues the tough love approach, a knock came at the door.

"Gabe, Michael? The press is waiting for you. You have an interview, remember?" Someone called through the door.

"Yes, sorry, another fifteen minutes, please," Gabe, who had his fringe parted on the opposite side from Michael, called out.

Michael cursed under his breath, complaining about how quickly time had passed.

"It's no sweat, guys, if you ever wanna hang again, you have our numbers now, so you can call instead of going through Providence 'email filters,'" Rex piped cheerfully.

Gabe and Michael exchanged strained looks that sent Rex on alert. They certainly wouldn't look so distressed just by having their little chat cut short.

Having a hunch, Rex casually asked where their father, who had also appointed himself their manager, was.

Michael heaved a heavy sigh.

"Actually, he's supposed to be here, or rather, he would have been here like he normally would, instead of leaving his assistants to run everything."

"But recently, he's been a little, distracted," Gabe continued.

"Side-tracked," Michael clarified.

"Unfocused."

Noah cleared his throat.

"Uh guys, we get it. And I get the feeling that you know the reason why he's missing in action, and you don't like it."

Gabe slumped sideways and glumly rested his forehead on his palms, bracing an elbow on the armrest.

"Remember the nanite enhancing patch that our dad used to put on us?" Michael reminded in a dreary tone.

Rex and Noah exchanged looks and stiffened. Rex could feel the hairs crawling at the back of his neck and was sure Noah felt the same way. Whatever that the twins were going to say next, were definitely bad news.

"Yea, but he has stopped, right? Back then, I heard Six saying that he gave Providence a lead on the manufacturer and distributers," Rex recounted blandly.

It was for that reason, that White Knight showed miraculous leniency, completely pardoning *Coach and letting him off the hook from serving any term. He was only smacked a fine, and had to submit to going to family counseling for a couple of times.

"Yea, he did. And he has been great ever since."

"The best coach, the best supporter, motivator, manager," Gabe counted off.

"But he suddenly fell into a slump. An accident last year gave him a bad knee."

They briefly shared how his knee couldn't be fixed and had been giving him problems such that he couldn't run, do any sports or even a simple jog. They said it made him frustrated, and though he struggled to keep a positive outlook, he was never quite the same.

Then a few months back, they had noticed weird things happening with their dad. He would suddenly go about his sport as if his knee was completely healed, but would have abnormalities elsewhere, like an enlarged arm or a huge mound over his back.

The twins sadly continued that they had caught him a couple of times with something that looked similar to the old patches he had used on them.

"But the effects are temporary. As soon as he's off whatever nanite enhancing stimulant, his knee goes back into relapse while his mutations disappear," Michael finished grimly.

Rex could imagine how crushing it was to a guy like Coach to have such a handicap. No doubt Coach would turn to drastic measures to try to alleviate his weakness, even if it were for a heavy price, just like he had done before towards his own sons.

Needless to say, concerned and worried for their dad, the twins had confronted him about it several times. But Coach outright denied it and goes ballistic every time.

"I know he's yeller and seems mad all the time, but I swear, his temper has shot off the roof recently."

"Yea, I'm worried that the patch he's using is giving anger management problems."

"And besides that, we really don't know if there are any worse side effects."

"I see, so this is why you had invited us here –you need our help," Rex said in realization.

The twins nodded.

"There's no one else we can think of. We have a good guess where he gets his supplies from –we've followed him a couple of times to this really suspicious place. But we can't go to the police nor Providence because we don't want Dad to get into any trouble."

"Right, so you want us to do you a favor –go undercover, cut off your Dad's supply and keep it quiet," Noah added.

"Exactly," Gabe nodded and begged, "Please, it'll mean a lot to us. We'll probably never able to return the favor-"

"-But we will help you in any way that we can if you ever need it," Michael finished for his brother.

Rex grinned.

"Hey, don't sweat it guys. You've got me when you begged," Rex said good-humouredly, "Just tell us where you think your dad gets his supplies from."

The twins gave a grateful smile, looking miles relieved.

"It's this club in Brooklyn called 'Staizer.'"

"No way, you kiddin' me?" Rex gave a laugh in disbelief and turned to Noah, "Hey, wasn't that where you and Annie wanted to head to at first?"

Noah stared back at him with a pallor on his face.

Rex was thrown off by his odd expression, and asked Noah if something was wrong.

Noah answered that he was fine, but in a wooden manner, reminding Rex of earlier when he looked troubled at Annie's suggestion for Rex to join them at the club. Rex tried to shrug it off, thinking that he was over thinking it, until they left the twin's dressing room and exited the performance building.

Noah then pointedly suggested that Rex should sit this one out, leaving the investigations to him. Rex gave Noah the eagle eye and folded his arms.

"Okay, Noah, something is _definitely_ up with that club. Why do you not want me to come?"

Noah remained uncharacteristically silent, fuelling Rex's puzzlement.

"Well, whatever, I'm gonna give Annie a call to see if she's still up to join us," Rex said, ignoring Noah's protest.

If Noah wouldn't tell him, then he was damn well gonna head over and find out the reasons for himself.

* * *

 **Author's Comments:**

It's clubbing scene next. *winks*

And what can I say? Rex shall get the shock of his life…hehe. Can you guess why?

 **Footnotes:**

*Annie / first time he double dated with her and Noah with Claire, during Noah's junior prom :

Recall season 1, episode "Wingman", where she first appears. I really dig her, because her 'jinx' powers are just too hilarious. That was why I just had to include her in, even if I'm not going to pair her up with Rex.

*Gabe and Michael / Coach:

Recall "Without A Paddle." I liked how at the end, Coach came to terms with their preferences and continued to be supportive. And by the way, since the cartoon never gave Coach a name, I just kept it the same way. XD


	11. Keeping in role or keeping it real

LONGEST CHAPTER thus far! But I promise, it's WORTH IT peeps! *smiles wickedly*

Thank you for your patience, as like they say, good things come to those who wait. Hehe!

(Or at least, I hope you peeps will enjoy this chapter.)

* * *

 **C** **hapter Eleven: Keeping in role, or keeping it real?**

(Rex and Noah investigates the club)

* * *

It was late, and the streets were empty, and dark except for the street lamps and the few apartment units that still had the lights on. Still, it felt like the night was still young as there was a long queue outside the club. 'Staizer' –her name was in bold, fluorescent lights hanging above the door of an otherwise, run of the mill commercial apartment in a run-down part of town. One wouldn't think there was anything entertaining going on in these parts if there wasn't the excited line of people or the neon lights.

The queue moved pretty quickly so it didn't take long for them to reach near the stairwells down the entrance.

Noah seemed to have relaxed since coming from the concert hall, apparently resigned to Rex finding out god knows what. Annie was in excited chanter the whole way through after she joined them in the queue. She rushed down in a cab, surprising Rex and prompting him to tease her as a party animal.

She laughed boisterously at that and didn't deny it. He tried getting some details from her about what she had heard about the club, but she remained tight-lipped, only smiling evilly and saying that she wouldn't want to spoil the surprise.

Then Rex noticed two ladies at the back of the queue, necking one another.

Rex pointed at them with his chin.

"Wow, pretty passionate, aren't they? And right in the open too."

Rex supposed club goers were liberal and wouldn't care, even if there was still that stigma towards same sex couples.

Annie flashed another evil, knowing grin, annoying him again, whilst Noah blatantly pretended that he hadn't heard anything, whistling away to himself.

Rex shot Noah another suspicious glare, getting more anxious by the second that the both of them seemed to know something terrible that they were about to walk themselves into, yet acted like they'd survive it, and he wouldn't.

It didn't help either that Noah had insisted that they go back to his dorm to change before coming over, saying how their suits wouldn't blend in with the crowd and might hinder their investigation. It made sense, but somehow, Rex felt uncomfortable looking at Noah in that jaw dropping, eye popping outfit. It was so tight, Noah might as well be wearing a skin tight bodysuit. Needless to say, Noah's clothing didn't look thick enough to protect against the chilly night air. As for Annie, she was back in her earlier get up and god only knows how her skimpy clothing could protect her from the cold – but Rex wasn't about to comment on that least she gives her roll of the eyes.

Rex was the only one in a sensible outfit – a simple tee and jeans – courtesy of Noah, since Rex had nothing else to change into. Noah was slighter than Rex, so the sleeveless black tee was a snug fit. The dark jeans were a bit tight, but it was kinda stretchy, so it felt more comfy the longer he wore it. Anyway, as long as he didn't need to do splits, he figured the pants were just fine.

"Oh Rex, this is mild. This should be the first time that you set foot in this sort of club, so you better be prepared for the action."

"Hey, I'm not a party animal like you, but I'm no greenhorn either. I've been clubbing a couple of times with Noah –" Rex paused for a while – "and my ex. Just ask him."

Annie chortled. "Oh but not this one, Rex. Seriously, prepare to be mind fucked."

When finally they descended down the steps and into the dark club filled with flashing lights and bobbing people, Rex finally understood what Annie meant.

Bodies melded into bodies awashed in pyrotechnic lights streaming all over the dance floor, with hazy white mist curling around people's feet –the standard clubbing staging.

There was just one thing –they were all either guy on guy or girl on girl, rocking their bodies and lips together.

It was a _gay club_. Oh lord. No wonder Noah was against him coming here. But then again, why would Noah agree to accompany Annie to a place like this?

Rex would have remained rooted on the sidelines if Annie didn't drag him along while laughing her head off, taunting him as a greenhorn.

Rex was too shocked to react to that either, because a guy just smacked Noah –

–In. The. Ass.

And Noah only shrugged it off, barely giving that creep a second glance. But before Noah could step past him, the creep curled a possessive arm around Noah's hips and held him back.

"Nice ass, you think there's space in between for me?"

Rex struck out and landed a punch on the guy's jaw before he realized what he had done. Doesn't matter anyway –the prick deserved it.

"Rex!" Noah snapped and pulled him aside, "What do you think you are doing?"

The creep hurled some incomprehensible vulgarities at Rex while nursing his lower jaw with a palm. Rex guessed the fellow would have a hard time talking and eating for weeks – _well, good_ , Rex thought to himself wickedly.

Then the creep got up and stood toe to toe with Rex, while Noah wrapped his arm across Rex's shoulder to hold him back. Annie, meanwhile, had retreated a way off from the fight.

"C'mon Rex, let's just walk away. I'm fine, so don't make a scene," Noah tried to calm him down, but Rex ignored him, ready to punch the lights out of this guy.

"Vat da hell? Vie da ya hit me? He's not vours, is he?" the guy snarled.

"Shut up you perv! That was gross. Keep your _filthy_ mouth shut and your hands to yourself, bastard!"

The guy made a face and fumed, muttering and swearing but left them.

Noah dropped his arms and when Rex spun around to check up on him, he found the most pained expression on Noah's face.

"Noah, you okay?" Rex tentatively asked, reaching for his shoulder.

Noah smacked his hand away in a surprising, cold manner.

"I'm fine," Noah spat, tone edgy, "Just remember what we are here for. So rein in your punches or we'll get kicked out."

Rex gave him an incredulous stare.

"How could you keep complete cool over something like that?"

Noah shrugged and his usual smirk crept back –a relief to Rex.

"Acting classes. It's all about keeping in role, being a chameleon."

"Right," Rex dragged out his reply, still in disbelief, following after Noah and Annie who led the way along the walls where it was less crowded.

"So, meaning, I have to _pretend_ to be gay?" Rex deadpanned.

"Yes, probably," Noah flashed him that wicked grin of his, "Unless you don't think you're good enough for this investigation, then you can sit it out."

Buttons pushed, Rex scoffed.

"Yea right, as if I'll leave all the fun to you two. Fine, I'll keep a calm head, but don't expect me to pretend to be gay."

"Maybe a couple of drinks will put you in the mood," Annie suggested, brows wagging, exchanging wicked looks with Noah, who laughed. Rex really didn't like this, but followed them anyway.

As they weaved through singles and groups who hung around outside the central dance floor, one douchebag after the other kept hitting on Noah.

Shock couldn't even begin to describe how Rex felt.

Annie was certainly right about the mind fuck.

He could hardly believe how the other guys they walked passed wolfed Noah down with their hungry eyes, and came onto his best friend. They touched his shoulder, his back and grabbed his waist or butt, so the three of them were stopped more times than a heavy traffic at peak hour.

"What the hell is this? I don't believe this!" Rex muttered incredulously under his breath, watching the bad movie play out in front of him, lagging a few steps behind Noah.

It was like Noah was the sheep, walking into a den of hungry wolves.

Annie was right next to Rex and laughed when she heard him.

"It's his pheromones, Rex, you just never noticed."

"Right, of course not, unless he was female," Rex deadpanned, prompting another laugh.

He tried to figure out what possessed those wolves to fondle Noah's ass. Noah couldn't walk five steps without someone molesting his bum. It must be due to Noah tight tank top and pants that stretched over his body like second skin –Rex couldn't exactly see the attraction, but obviously the other gay guys here did.

"Seriously, what's so great about a guy's ass? They aren't boobs!" Rex exclaimed.

Annie gave a hoot and patted her hand on his shoulder.

"Not unless they are like Noah's. You gotta admit, Noah has a great tush. I mean, just look at it."

Rex stared at her like she was crazy.

"Why the hell would I ogle at my best friend's ass?"

She must be going bonkers, but he tried to put it into perspective. The lighting in the club was specifically contrived to give emphasis on silhouette, painting a racy, heart pulsating appeal. So Rex could see Noah's pants stretched taut across his ass, well emphasizing his curvy mounds.

"Okay, so he has a great ass," Rex conceded to Annie, "But they still aren't boobs."

Annie rolled her eyes.

"Oh heavens, I wonder how the poor sob gets stuck on a guy like you," she gave him an unfathomable look, confusing him with her words, then continued, "Anyway, forget about it. At least be glad that they're into him, and not you."

"Right," Rex said blandly, though he felt no relief.

And he couldn't understand how Noah looked at such ease, seemingly enjoying the attention. Noah even flirted back with a few of them, kissing their cheek before smoothly spinning out of their slimy arms.

Then right before they reached the bar, Rex felt someone grab his ass and he jerked violently. He spun around and would have punched the animal and sent him flying to kingdom come, if Annie didn't quickly sandwich herself in between and push Rex forwards.

Rex closed the remaining few strides and nearly collapsed onto the stool. He felt so nauseated, he needed a drink to get drunk so that he could forget all that ever happened. However, Noah ordered for them something mild, since they were technically, still on a mission, albeit an unofficial one.

Rex raised his brows when Annie ordered hers. She caught his look and laughed lightly.

"I'm a strong drinker, Rex."

"Yea, funny I've never noticed before."

"Because you've never went clubbing with me," she threw over her shoulder and snorted at the obvious answer as she took up seat on Noah's other side.

"Right, so how come Noah's always the one who acts as your chaperone?"

Noah suddenly coughed into his drink and while Annie took a big swig of her drink before answering.

"Dunno, guess it's cause he used to be Claire's ex, and my mom trusts him."

"Huh? That doesn't make any sense. You mean your mom trusts the guy who broke up with your best friend?"

"Look, don't make me sound like the bad guy here," Noah punched his arm slightly, crooking a brow, "It was a mutual break up, remember?"

"Yea, I know, but I'm just saying, it doesn't make sense."

Annie gave a small sigh.

"Well, she's met Noah and knows we hang out a lot. I think she wishes we were an item."

It was Rex's turn to cough and sputter his drink. He recovered with a few deep breaths but skipped asking because he felt disgusting paws –okay, hands actually –creep up his back and he knew without looking that it wasn't Noah.

Rex spun round on his stool and grabbed the pervert by the collar of his shirt.

"Go find yourself another meat, creep," Rex warned through clenched teeth.

"Oops, sorry, my mistake," the guy held both hands up in a defensive pose, "Seriously, just chill man."

Rex released him and continued to bear laser beams into his back, fuming.

"This place is dangerous," Rex muttered agitatedly and rested his back on the counter, deciding to face the crowd so that he could see when the next creep was coming.

Annie and Noah both cracked up.

"C'mon Rex, even more than EVOs and evil maniacs?" Annie teased, "I thought the Great Nanite Generator is brave and infallible."

"Yea," Noah added, "besides, it couldn't have felt all that bad, right?"

Rex gave a visible shudder.

"Seriously, a tarantula crawling over my back would have felt better."

Noah smirked.

"You mean like this?"

In a mind-boggling move, Noah was walking down Rex's spine with his fingers, starting from his nape. Rex bolted upright and was too surprised to react besides that.

Tingles rippled across his back from Noah's fingersteps, the sensation ticklish and so strange that it made his toes curl.

Finally, snapped out of his trance, Rex lightly smacked Noah's hand away.

" _Quit it_ Noah, don't play act gay stuff with me."

Noah stiffened right that instant, face contorting.

 _Oops, was that too harsh?_

Rex knew that Noah liked to play practical jokes and kid around. Hell, they've even kissed and it never had any 'gay meaning'.

Before he could say anything, however, the guy sitting beside Rex cleared his throat loudly, prompting their attention.

"This sure is hilarious –a straight guy showing up at a place like this. Makes me wonder why."

Rex glared at the guy with a brow piercing, and folded his arms.

"Hey, Noah and I are both –"

"Oh, he's just curious," Noah interrupted before Rex could correct him, unceremoniously pushing his head aside and leaning forward to address him.

The guy made a harrumph.

"Poor sob, I suggest he better scuttle outta here for a scene that suits him better."

"Actually," Noah had a deviant smile playing on his lips then, and he hopped down his stool and squeezed in between Rex and the other guy, "My friend is only tagging along because we heard some of our friends talk about the _other scene_."

Then Noah dropped his voice and threw an arm over the other guy's shoulder.

"The one where you can get the stuff to heal injuries, and feel strong. You don't happen to know anything about it, do you?"

The guy curled his lips slowly in a devious smile, eyes glinting with something almost feral.

"I should tell you to go to the hospital for that. But I thought you might ask something like that, since there's no other reason a Stiff like him would be here."

"A Stiff?" Rex was offended, "What do you mean, Stiff?"

Annie laughed from behind.

"It just means 'straight.'"

Suddenly, it hit Rex that someone like Coach wouldn't be caught dead entering a gay club like this unless there was something he desperately wanted. And since this guy here said it the way he did, Rex realized that he could possibly be their lead.

Noah seemed to catch onto the same thing, as he pressed on.

"So, you _do_ know where I can get the stuff."

The guy let out a throaty laugh and stared at Noah with a sickening gaze that made bile rise up Rex's throat.

"I have my connections, but not just anyone can get the stuff, you know? They have a fairly strict policy…unless, you can offer something _in exchange_."

"How about a dance?" Noah said suggestively in a tone that Rex had never heard before, while sandwiching himself between the man's thigh.

The other guy let out a crude snicker.

"You have to try better than that."

"I'm a good dancer. Or better yet, let's ditch this place and go somewhere, _private_."

Rex restrained himself from pulling his friend away. He knew what Noah was doing –cajoling with the other in order to get information. But it felt so wrong, and it was excruciatingly hard to watch as Noah practically climbed onto the guy's lap and flirted with him, letting the guy roam his hands all over Noah's back.

And again, there was the ass grabbing.

Rex could barely keep himself in the seat, every muscle tensing with the urge to rip the bastard's arm off.

Then Noah finally managed to convince the bastard, pulling him to his feet and dragging him off to the dance floor.

Rex had every intention to follow, but Annie held him back.

"Don't –just let him do his thing."

"You mean letting him offer himself up for sacrifice?" Rex gave her a look of utter horror at her suggestion.

Annie snorted.

"I thought you guys are here to get information. Noah can handle himself. Besides, it's just a dance, Rex. Not a satanic ritual."

"He's being feasted on –how is that any different?"

Annie gave him the eagle eye.

"I think you're overreacting. If it bothers you this much… are you _jealous_?" Annie teased with a twinkle in her eye.

Rex was about to say that it was the most absurd thing to suggest, when her phone rang.

"Shit!" she cursed aloud, "It's my mom."

Annie gave a look that begged for pity.

"Yes, Mom, I'm with Noah…well he can't talk right now, he's dancing…with someone else, duh…What? No way I'm not going to do that.. Yes! He did accompany me! –"

Annie sounded annoyed, like she was having a tough conversation then she put the phone to Rex.

"Help me out here, Rex. Tell her that you and Noah are with me, but Noah is dancing so he can't come to the phone."

Rex was perplexed with the strange demands of Annie's mom, but did as Annie asked. Convinced, her mom finally hung up.

"Phew, that was close, thanks Rex."

"Anytime, but can you please tell me why your mom has such a strange rule?"

Before Annie could tell him, a leggy, red-haired bombshell in hot pants and combat boots snaked an arm from behind and squeezed Annie's waist.

"Hey, I got your text and came as soon as I could –I'm _sooo_ glad you could make it," the bombshell cooed against Annie's neck in between plastering kisses.

"Me too," Annie replied breathlessly, then turned to meet the other woman full on the lips.

Rex watched another jaw dropping, eye-popping episode, this one featuring Annie, making out with another girl.

When Annie finally pulled away, breathless and looking dizzy with happiness, she gave Rex a sly smile.

"Sorry Rex, I didn't introduce you earlier. This is Alexa, we're kinda going out."

"Pleasure," Alexa raised a fist and held it in front of him.

Still shocked with the sudden revelation that Annie was gay, Rex blankly stared at it for two seconds before returning with a retarded fist bump.

"Nice, so you two have been dating?" Rex asked again, as if he hadn't heard right.

Annie elbowed his ribs while Alexa laughed.

"I've heard all about you. Thanks for the cure, dude. Otherwise, I would have remained stuck with eight squid like arms."

Annie lovingly rubbed Alexa's arms.

"Mmm… I wouldn't have mind. Then I would have eight arms wrapped around me."

"You naughty kitten…"

They laughed and kissed again before Annie breathlessly announced that they were going to hit the dance floor.

"Sure, enjoy yourself," Rex called after them in a stunned manner.

Talk about discovering the most epic things about his friends.

Not that he had any problems with Annie being gay, but it came as such shock because he hadn't the slightest clue. This explained why her mom was on her case –probably found out about Annie being gay, and must have preferred that Annie date a regular guy like Noah than stick with a girlfriend.

And as for Noah, well, it was the shock of Rex's life to find out his best friend was also on the list of 'guys whose ass gays most wanna grab.' He recalled the kissing both at Noah's school fair and realized in ire, that Noah was popular among the gays on campus as well.

Rex didn't know what to make of that. Though Rex was not homophobic, if it were him, he'd still probably freak and bash the creeps who tried to touch him. But it was only natural, wasn't it? As a straight guy, Rex would get the hibbie-jibbies if another guy came onto him. So why does Noah seem completely cool with it?

Rex remained at his seat, mulling over it while he chased off guys who appeared mildly interested with him, with his deadly, menacing glare. Finally, restless and unable to sit still, he got up and squeezed through the crowd on the dance floor, trying to find Noah. God knows why Noah's taking so long to get Intel out from the guy. Rex imagined that since Noah had the acting chops, it should be a breeze.

Rex muttered his curses at the hands that brushed him, not sure if they were accidents, or deliberate. He shook off his discomfort, focusing on finding Noah.

Then he did, and felt his blood run cold.

Noah was a vision of errant euphoria, body swaying in a carnal dance with the guy whom he was supposed to get leads from. He had his back plastered against the chest of the other guy, shamelessly grinding his bum against the other's rabid humping like they were animals in heat. The guy had both hands travelling all over Noah, then they crept under Noah's shirt, stopping at his chest and doing something to him that drew out a loud, throaty moan. Rex got the unpleasant feeling that the guy was fondling with Noah's nipples.

And Noah was enjoying it.

Rex was dumbstruck and filled with an overwhelming feeling he couldn't place, that surged within his chest, threatening to burst. He never imagined that Noah could behave in such a sleazy manner, or go so far with his acting.

Noah had his head thrown sideways, eyes shut and mouth gasping in ecstasy under the guy's ministrations. The other took advantage and feasted on Noah's exposed neck, lips going up the side of his neck, then down along his jaw towards his mouth.

Then the guy grabbed Noah's jaw and angled him further sideways so their mouths could touch. Rex unrooted from his spot that instant, terrible trance broken, seized by an intense need to save Noah from this sordid exchange of saliva.

Just as Rex was five steps away, Noah suddenly put his hand in between his and the other guy's lips.

"No kissing," Noah said laughing, then his laughter promptly died when he saw Rex.

A torrent of emotions ran past Noah's face then –shock, fear, shame, distress –but it was only for a few seconds, before his wayward mask slipped back into place.

It was enough to tell Rex that Noah still had his wits about him and wasn't reducing himself to a slutty creature without reason.

Rex boiled inside, pissed that the other guy was dirtying Noah and more pissed that he let his best friend pretend to delight in what should otherwise account as rape. The blood throbbed madly in his temples, threatening to burst his veins.

"That's enough," Rex all but snarled, voice shaking with anger that he was struggling to control.

He gripped the guy's bony wrist and wretched it away, tearing a curse from the guy's lips.

"Rex!" Noah hissed and grabbed the arm that attacked the other guy, "What are you doing?"

"Getting you out of this sicko's arms."

"Let off, Rex, don't spoil my fun," Noah snapped and gave him a threatening glare.

"Yea, fuck off, Stiff. Don't stick your nose into other people's business. If you don't like what you see, then get the hell out," the other guy spat vehemently.

Rex was incensed and would have told Noah to drop the act and that they would find another way to get the Intel, when Noah softened his gaze and gave him a pleading look.

 _Damn!_ Rex cursed inwardly. He was never able to go against that.

Rex reluctantly held back, releasing the guy's wrist and biting his tongue to keep from exploding and ruining Noah's efforts.

"Humph! The spoiler," the guy spat angrily, nursing his wrist. Then pretending like Rex wasn't there, he grabbed Noah's waist and pulled him flushed against him, eyeing him with his disgusting perverted gaze.

"Now, why don't you and I head to the back rooms for more privacy, eh?" the guy pinched Noah's chin, "If you don't want to kiss, then let's put your mouth to work elsewhere."

Only Noah's pointed stare at Rex that begged him to remain calm, saved the disgusting asshole from flying across the room from Rex's nanite fist. Rex had to settle for playing it out in his mind instead.

But he couldn't let Noah go along with such a revolting suggestion, pulling him back just as the other guy started dragging him off. The guy threw back a pissed look at Rex and gave him the middle finger.

"Whatever, it's your call, blonde. If you want to know how to get the stuff, you know where to find me."

Then he pushed through the crowd and was quickly swallowed by the mass of rocking bodies.

"Rex, c'mon, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me," Noah said softly.

"Noah, this is crazy. I'm not gonna let you-" Rex paused and struggled to find the words without choking, "There has to be another way. There's no reason why you should take such a drastic approach. I could easily take him outside and scare him, force him to talk."

Noah sighed.

"I've thought of that, of luring him outside, I mean. But he didn't want to go out, so I was stuck here dancing with him. Think about it, for an illegal nanite enhancing patch to be circulating without Providence knowledge, it must mean the smugglers have an extensive network. There must be several others like him around the club, keeping an eye out and scouting for potential buyers."

Rex frowned, mulling over Noah's words.

"Okay, so you're saying that we can't just drag him out or resort to force, or we will alert the others."

"Right," Noah nodded, "Then they'll probably pack up and flee before we have the chance to nab the ones who actually have access to the patches. I bet they work with several links in their chain of command, so even if the small fry is caught, he can't rat out the big fish because he might not even know who it is."

"This… sounds like a complicated operation," Rex realized in chagrin, "We could be getting in out of our heads here, especially you."

Noah gave a smirk.

"Don't fret, Rex, didn't I tell you? I'm pro at this. Now let me go."

Rex squared his jaw, hating this.

"Let me follow you, Noah."

"What? Are you crazy?"

It was now Noah who stared at Rex with balled eyes.

"Why not? You seemed to handle it fine –I don't want to leave you alone with that creep."

Noah vehemently shook his head.

"Rex, the back rooms are not for you. I mean it, don't follow me, or you will sorely regret it," Noah warned with a critical eye, tone grave.

Rex mutely nodded and made his way back to the bar, dissuaded by the dead serious gaze in Noah's eye that meant business. Rex was usually stubborn and insistent, but there were times when Noah would give him that look that he couldn't refute. So he let Noah have his way, but god damn how his throat and chest burned like fire, and it wasn't because of the glass after glass of beer that he was chugging down.

"Woa, you know you're gonna get a hangover tomorrow."

Rex gave half a turn of his head to acknowledge Annie who had come back to the bar.

"Hey," she softened her tone and sidled up to him, putting her hand on his shoulder, "Rex, I know from Noah you don't usually drink. You okay? What happened?"

"Where's Alexa?" Rex ignored her question.

"She left," she gave a small sigh, "She's a little upset with me because she wanted me to spend the night with her. But I gotta get home, you know? Or Mom will get suspicious. And Noah has to send me back."

Rex cast an incredulous gaze.

"Seriously? She wants him to nanny you so far? But wouldn't it be late by that time?"

"Yea, well, that's my mom. She's a bit hard to deal with."

"Couldn't you just talk to your mom about this? Just accept the fact that you're gay and move on?"

Annie cast him a defeated look.

"You don't know my mom. Her prime concern is how I'm not going to be able to give her any grandchildren."

"Well, you could always try surrogate," Rex joked lightly, drawing a tiny smile from her.

"Yea well, she's a bit more traditional. Anyway, I should count myself lucky that she didn't throw me out the house. That happened to some people I know."

Rex felt his mind churn, wondering why that sounded so familiar. But before he could ask her to clarify this nagging feeling he had at the back of his head, she returned to her initial question.

Rex bit his lips and tensed, gripping the beer glass so hard it suddenly cracked, the jagged line running down the side.

"Woa," Annie commented, then plucked the glass out of his hands, "C'mon tiger, talk to me. Let out your steam or you'll blow."

When Rex remained stubbornly silent, she pressed him again.

"This is about Noah, isn't it? You saw how the other guy was all over him?"

Rex jolted like lightning struck him, and immediately flared up on seeing the scene play out in front of his eyes again.

"It was _completely_ gross! I mean, how could Noah stand that guy _t-touching_ him like that. _It's sick_. And the bastard even asked Noah to –to –"

Rex lost his nerve to speak.

 _Let's put your mouth to work elsewhere,_ Rex recalled those offending words and grinded his teeth. He knew full well what that meant. And it was outrageous that Noah seemed okay with such an appalling act.

 _Is Noah really going to do it? Give that bastard a blowjob?_

"Argh! How could he take his acting so far?" Rex lamented in agony, feeling tortured for his friend.

Annie remained silent for a long stretch, and when she finally spoke, she said something that made Rex question how much did he really know, about his best friend.

"Oh Rex, you really _don't know_ anything, do you?"

Rex returned a questioning gaze, bewildered.

Then he caught sight of Coach and straightened, all senses on full alert.

"He's here," Rex commented and quickly pushed all his agonizing thoughts aside, remembering that he have to focus on the mission. Now that Coach was here, if Rex could quickly solve this case, he could quickly save Noah from hell.

Annie looked confused and asked, "Who?"

Rex turned her shoulders to face Coach at the far wall.

"You mean Coach? I don't see him."

Rex remembered then that normal people didn't have his vision, so he took off his goggles that was sitting atop his head and handed it to her.

"Oh, now I see him. Woa, this is really close up, like a binoculars, and the place looks brighter," Annie commented as she looked through the lenses, "But you could spot him without this? You weren't wearing them just now."

Rex nodded. It wasn't a big contrast, but he could see further and had better sight in the dark compared to most people. Holiday had run a couple of test and confirmed that his photoreceptor cells were more sensitive to light compared to the average person, giving him superior vision.

Even so, he still relies on his high-tech goggles since it gave him better visual by at least three to five times.

"So, aren't you going to catch him?"

Rex shook his head, remembering Noah's words.

"No, we need to lay low and check things out first."

"Hmm, not being as brash and impatient as you usually are, huh?"

Rex gave her a smirk.

"It depends on circumstances. Now c'mon, I need your help. Lend me some cover."

Then Rex dragged her across the club, closing the distance to Coach, who went right up to a bouncer guarding the door close to the second bar. Rex noticed the bouncer nodding to a guy sitting by the bar before letting Coach in.

Rex promptly stopped and pulled Annie onto the dance floor so they wouldn't look conspicuous, but remained at the edge so he could have a clear view.

Noah was right –there likely was a group of people in the club involved in the illegal trade. The key was rounding out their leader.

Annie put her arms around Rex's neck as they danced in a slow spin. He swept a sharp gaze across the club, trying to spot other suspects.

Moments later, Coach exited the room, and shiftily looked around before hurrying out.

"He's leaving, aren't you going to follow?"

"There's no point. If we wanna stop Coach, we have to cut off the source. I bet the leader is inside that room."

"Great, so are you going to bust in?"

"No, not until I get word from Noah."

As if on cue, Noah showed up, and Rex tensed, trying hard not to imagine what Noah was doing the last thirty minutes. He could swear that Noah's lips look puffy and swollen. He felt bile rise up his throat but he forced it back down.

"Any news?"

Noah grinned and revealed a few pieces of patches from his back pocket, confirming that the trading was taking place.

"Good," Rex nodded woodenly then pointed with his chin, "We saw Coach enter that room. I think the transaction takes place there."

Noah glanced in that direction.

"Must be the VIP room. I saw a couple of people going in and out through a connecting door. But I don't think this is their only operation place. I weaned info that they've got a couple of set ups like this across several bars, all around Brooklyn."

"Wow, Mr. investigator, how did you come by those info?" Annie arched a brow and gave a bland look.

Noah shrugged.

"People say all sorts of things when they're sexually excited to a certain level. Clouds their judgement."

Rex forced himself to not think about what Noah did to sexually excite the fellow. Instead, he focused on contemplating their options.

This meant they couldn't just bust the operations here, as the rest of the ring would be alerted and would scramble to shift their operations. Even if they managed to get a few squeakers, they don't really have a clear idea exactly how big the trading ring was and how many people were involved. If they don't target the main bosses of the operations, the trade ring would just hide and repeat itself elsewhere.

One look at Noah, and Rex could tell that he shared the same opinion. Which meant only one thing –they would have to continue investigations here. It was a dreadful plan. But there really wasn't any other choice.

"So? What's the plan? Are we going to just hang around here doing nothing?" Annie asked with a slight irritation to her tone.

"There's nothing else we can do. We need more info –so we'll have to come back. Or rather, they're expecting us to. They gave me exactly three patches, one for the each of us, for free. The trader warned the limit is only one every twenty-four hours. And I bet it's just a free sample to make us addicted to it, then they'll start weaning money from us," Noah elaborated.

"Right, so we'll have to come back for more tomorrow," Rex deadpanned, lips tight.

 _Oh hell._

* * *

It was really late, a few hours past midnight so the trains had stopped running. Rex and Noah accompanied Annie home first, with Rex giving them a lift. He created a small seating box that dropped down from his regular turbine wings, so they could sit safely inside. As he moved through the dark sky, he glanced down frequently to check that they were okay.

Nevermind that flying at his speeds this late in autumn, was like jumping into a lake in winter. The cold didn't seem to bother Annie. She was a riot all the way back, hooting and laughing and exclaiming it was the best thrill ride she had been on, prompting Rex and Noah to exchange a couple of amused smiles. Noah had been through more heart-stopping aerial stunts with Rex but they kept it to themselves, least Annie wanted Rex to try anything drastic and jinx it.

Noah on the other hand, was rubbing his hands furiously over his upper arms, shoulders curled inward like he was cold. Noticing that, Rex extended his nanites to form a sort of shelter cocooning around Noah, leaving only his face exposed.

Noah shot up a grateful smile at him, whilst Annie burst out laughing, commenting that it looked ridiculous. Rex arched a brow and duplicated the extension over Annie, prompting Noah to laugh at her in return.

When they reached Annie'a place, Noah frantically urged Rex to help them make a quick getaway, but Annie's mom opened the front door before he could, looking more like a zombie. She had bags around her red eyes, hair all frizzy and messed up, like she had waited up all night.

"Mom, did you stay up again? I told you not to wait for me and just get to bed first."

Her mom brightened instantly like a light bulb switched on.

"Oh baby!" She ran to Annie and cupped her face, "I was so worried you wouldn't come home. Lord knows how your father's spirit will get a seizure if you run off to some other woman's house."

"Mom! Dad is already rested in peace. He won't notice me. Besides, I didn't –I came straight home, like you asked."

"Annie, your father is watching over you, over us, from heaven. And unless you want him to return to his body and rise from the dead, you had better keep yourself clean."

Rex couldn't help snickering under his breath –Annie's mom sure say some funny shit. No wonder Annie said her mom was hard to handle.

Then Annie's mom looked up and caught his stare. Her brows raised in surprise in recognition.

"Rex? Rex Salazar? Is that you?"

Rex gave his best smile while he heard Noah give an audible sigh from behind him.

Back while they were double dating, Rex had sent Annie home a couple of times, so she might have remembered him. It was surprising though, that her attitude changed so much. Back then, Annie's mom barely took a second glance at him, except to exchange 'hellos.'

Annie's mom rushed over, looking Rex up and down and started gushing over how much more handsome and taller he had become. She even circled him, making him feel extremely awkward and self-conscious, as if he was a pet on display.

Rex felt his face heat up over the exaggerated praises that she peppered him with, all of which seemed to have come out of nowhere. It was worse because she'd dragged Annie to him and kept nudging Annie to acknowledge his greatness. Annie looked heavenward and folded her arms, looking like she would rather be anywhere else.

"Annie, what's wrong with you, at least look interested. Rex is a fine young man who would be perfect for you! In fact, why don't you two try to date?"

"Mom!" Annie cried and looked mortified.

Rex was sure he looked the same way.

Noah then quickly made some excuse that they had to leave and elbowed Rex hard in the ribs. Rex took the cue, and brought out his Slyder, pulling Noah up behind him and zipped off before Annie's mom could suggest anything more ridiculous, like them getting married.

Rex slowed after they were a distance away, so the cold wind wouldn't be slapping so harshly against them, and so that Rex could better balance the board. Rex usually liked speeding, and wasn't afraid of falling over since the hover board was technically attached to his feet. But he was considerate of Noah, who balanced behind him with his arms around his shoulders.

Then Noah suddenly cracked up, laughing against Rex's back.

"You know, right up till last week, her mom had been trying to convince her to date me."

"I can imagine," Rex said dryly, "I guess her mom has problems accepting that she's lesbian."

He felt Noah tense slightly behind him.

"So you found out?"

"Yea, she introduced me to Alexa. Turned out Alexa had wanted to meet her at the club, which was why she got so mad before, when she couldn't go."

He could feel Noah's heavy breathing, chest rising and falling sharply against his back, and could tell Noah was nervous.

"And you're cool with it?"

Rex laughed lightly.

"Yea, sure, I mean, I was surprised, but it doesn't really matter. Doesn't change who she is, to me."

Noah's breath turned shaky now. At that point, Rex suddenly had a clarity of mind.

The things Annie said, Noah being close friends with her, his problems with his family and how he had acted so coolly and naturally at the club.

It was like a bomb dropped into his head, and Rex slowed down further, least he loses control of his Slyder.

"Noah, back at the club, you weren't really _acting_ , were you? You're _really_ gay, right?"

Noah's breath hitched, and his hand that went around Rex's shoulders for support, clenched, fisting his collar. An uncomfortable silence stretched between them. Rex didn't have to turn to see his friend to know his reply. Rex just knew the answer. And he wasn't sure what to feel about it. He knew he should just be cool about it, but somehow, Rex just couldn't take it as easily as how he accepted Annie.

A dozen, a million, questions whizzed about in Rex's mind. Like how he had never noticed. How he, as Noah's best friend, hadn't known. What were the signs he had missed? How could he not have known? Why, did Noah keep Rex in the dark? And does this mean Noah was okay with guys like for real? It should be, judging by how easily he handled the other gays at the clubs, right?

Rex was still very disturbed with the night's happenings, and couldn't stop wondering either, about how many guys had Noah fooled around with since he turned gay. But then again, could someone just suddenly become gay? Hadn't Noah also flirted with girls? Hell, he chased Claire for almost two years, dated her even! So what gives? Noah couldn't have been gay right from the start, could he? If so, what changed? And why? Since when? How long has he kept this from Rex?

Suddenly feeling a slight tremor against his collarbone, Rex glanced down and noticed Noah's trembling fingers. It made him more flustered, because it showed that Noah was shit terrified and Rex wasn't really sure how he should react. Really, what good use was watching eight seasons of melodramatic soap opera if none of the episodes taught him how to cope with a friend who had just come out as gay?

Still, forcing himself to calm down, Rex quickly put his thoughts into perspective and tried to think of something to say to control the incoming drama.

"…So then, Claire… that's why you two broke up, over two years back. You realized you were gay then, was it?"

Noah gave a small, shaky sigh. "Yea, I guess. I couldn't lie to myself anymore, nor to her."

"So… right from the start, you were actually gay? Why didn't you tell me?"

Noah loudly swallowed a huge breath of air, arms trembling faintly.

"You hate me now. You think it's gross. You said it was disgusting."

Rex remembered the angry words that he had thrown earlier, at those creeps who had put their hands on Noah.

He laid a gentle hand over Noah's to let him know he didn't find Noah repulsive. No matter what, he was cool with Noah –he was his best friend.

"No, I don't. I'm just kinda… shocked, because I've never noticed. And duh, those perverts were gross. I would have thought the same way even if you and Annie switched places," Rex tried to assure him. "It's just, I thought you liked Claire. I mean, you did have genuine feelings for her, right? Or… were you just pretending and forcing yourself?"

"…Yea, I really did like her," Noah croaked after a long pause, "It's just… I don't know… along the way, something changed, I guessed. I just… well, it's complicated."

"Okay… well, so it's just, like, only guys will do for you now? Or are you still okay with girls?"

Noah took a sharp intake of breath and exhaled in an exhausted manner, breath hot against Rex's nape.

"Only guys," Noah answered, voice sounding small and weak.

"Right," Rex acknowledged as calmly and nonchalantly as he could. But really, who was he kidding? He knew he would be up all night trying to digest this piece of info about his best buddy whom he thought he knew inside and out.

Really, why couldn't Noah have told him earlier? Noah had even been dreading that Rex would realize the truth, as was obviously seen when he tried to talk Rex out of going to Staizer. Once in it, there was no way Noah could hide the truth, or pretend otherwise, and a part of Rex was perplexed that Noah would let himself be cornered that way instead of being forthright from the start.

An even bigger part, was hurt that Noah couldn't be open enough to at least give him a clue. Rex thought that they shared everything with each other. At least on Rex's part, he kept no secrets from Noah.

"You didn't answer my earlier question," Rex began again after another minute of silence, "Why did you keep it from me? You know you can tell me anything."

Noah took another big gulp of air.

"You can't be serious," Noah's voice was slightly raised in disbelief.

"What do you mean? I'm serious when I said you should have told me. I mean, we're tight man, I thought you knew that," Rex reiterated, throwing a quick head turn sideways.

"Well I… it's not that easy," Noah sounded defeated, "I mean, I was scared, Rex."

Noah took a huge breath before continuing.

"I mean, look at my folks –they found out and look what happened? My dad drove me from home," he choked out, voice thick with emotion.

In that instant, Rex felt his heart go out for Noah. He chided himself inwardly to stop the finger pointing at his best bud. This wasn't the time to get upset over secrets. This wasn't about him – it was about Noah and his feelings, about what Rex should do to help Noah cope with such a difficult position. Because for sure, not everyone was on the same, open page on one's sexuality. Same sex relationships was still a big no-no for majority of society. Noah was gonna have a hard time, and was probably already having a hard time.

This, was the time for Rex to lend him a shoulder, to show his support.

"So… how did they know? You told them?" Rex asked softly, giving Noah's hand a gentle squeeze.

Noah heaved a heavy sigh before answering, "No, I brought a guy home, and they caught us with our pants down –like literally."

The image of Noah standing in his briefs with a faceless guy suddenly appeared in Rex's mind. The instances where he'd seen Noah in nothing but his briefs when they hung out at each other's room, was too many to count. It didn't seem to matter then –they were both guys, and buddies, and all they did was just have a quick change of clothes.

Rex found it hard to imagine Noah doing something else with another guy while their pants were off.

 _So they were having sex? Kissing and sucking and –_

Rex immediately cut his thoughts short, wondering where the hell that even came from. He felt horrified with himself –Noah's hanky panky was his own business.

Rex's long silence must have given Noah the wrong impression, because Noah started fidgeting, arms shaking again.

"Look, it's okay to say you're disgusted with me or something, because yea, I know you're cool with a kiss, but for me, I went all the way."

Rex pulled to an abrupt halt, causing Noah to yelp in surprise.

In a flash, he turned around on his hover board and gripped Noah's shoulder, staring at Noah dead in the eye.

"Noah, you could be a transvestite, for all I care. Doesn't change who you are, to me. Our friendship _doesn't_ change."

Against the dark sky, Noah's eyes were bright and glistening, wet like he was holding back tears. And his irises were trembling like he was scared. He bit his lips, anxious and timid.

 _How long had Noah kept this a secret?_

 _How long had he worried about Rex treating him differently if he knew?_

There was so much anxiety, worry and fear. Noah's pain tore at Rex's heart.

 _Don't be afraid._

How was Rex going to put it across to Noah? To make Noah understand that he really didn't care that Noah was gay?

Without thinking about it, Rex pulled Noah in, curling his arms round Noah's back. It was just but one simple action. But that was really all that was needed between best friends. The point that Rex wanted to put across, reached Noah in that moment.

Rex's simple, unquestioning acceptance all but freed Noah from his fear. Relieved, Noah sagged against him, head burying into the crook of Rex's neck, arms climbing around his shoulders. Noah released a long, shaky breath, as if letting out all his fears, all his uncertainties and all his anxiousness.

Minutes passed. Could be an eternity, for all Rex could care.

They stayed that way, bodies warm against the cold, frosty air, breaths quiet but in rhythm with each other. Thoughts were overwhelmed, but supported by one another's quiet reassurance.

Rex wasn't going to run from his friend in spite of the unexpected revelation. Granted, it would be hard to get used to knowing it, but he was determined not to let it get in the way of his friendship.

And Noah needn't fear losing his precious friend. Finally the hurdle has passed and though abundant fears still gripped him, he was convinced more than ever, to fight to keep this friendship.

Noah sighed again, but this time, it was small one, of relief, of contentment.

"Thank you, Rex."

His words held oceans of emotion, and Rex understood that it all but held one meaning. Noah was thankful to have Rex here, by his side. And honestly, so was Rex.

Rex nodded, hands still stroking Noah's back. Then he felt Noah's chest bubbling with laughter.

"And well, you sure you wouldn't mind me looking like a tranny? Like, even if I look freaky, you'd still hang with me?"

Rex laughed, relieved that Noah was feeling better, glad that Noah had the burden lifted from his shoulders. Noah was joking again, and that was a good sigh.

Rex released him and gave a lopsided smile.

"Dude, if I remember correctly, you actually kinda rocked the long *wig you wore while we were protecting *Feakins."

"You have to be freaking kiddin' me," Noah replied in an amused tone.

Then they both cracked up on remembering.

Really, being with Noah always feels good. All the good times they had. And how they always got each other's joke. It was like their friendship bond was entwined tightly with the threads of fate.

Come hell or high water, Rex was sure that nothing could change their friendship. Because Rex never, ever, want it to change.

* * *

Rex couldn't believe his eyes.

He must be lying someplace in between heaven and hell. Because this couldn't be real.

Noah was kneeling above him shirtless, fondling and pinching his own nipples and begging for Rex to help him. Rex was too dumbfounded to react, except to succumb to the throes of his cock that was mercilessly grinded against Noah's.

This was wrong, it shouldn't be happening, he shouldn't be doing this with his best friend.

But Noah was a transfigured deity, devilishly diving his hands into his own pants and stroking himself while looking so beautiful, gasping and mewing and aiming large, angelic eyes at him.

Rex thought he was going crazy while he watched Noah do porno acts. He couldn't keep himself from thrusting upwards, rubbing his hard, aching cock against Noah's, wanting to reach the heights of nirvana while plummeting into the fiery gates.

Then without warning, he fell and crashed heavily, possibly in the deepest burrows of hell for daring to defile his best friend.

He blinked and surveyed his surroundings.

Erotic Noah was gone, and most surprisingly, he was lying on clean, white floors in a familiar room.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty, you're supposed to head over Brooklyn, remember? To some club or whatever. It's already late afternoon."

Rex couldn't reply straightaway.

He was momentarily confused, staring blankly at Bobo's face that appeared overhead. Then he remembered that in the wee hours of the morning, after sending Annie home, he sent Noah back to his dorm since he had a project with his schoolmates that day. And right after he returned to his room, exhaustion suddenly overpowered him so he promptly crashed on the couch. It had to be because of the mountainous new _discovery_ he made last night, that suddenly wore him down.

 _Noah was Gay._

Rex had witnessed his best friend transforming into a blond falate and just _killin'_ the other gays in the club. And Noah was forced to admit to it since there was no use denying it after the obvious show.

Sure, Rex assured Noah that he has completely accepted it – as to be expected of their incredibly tight friendship – but certainly, Rex still has a lot of internal muscling to do. And the proof of how much internal mulling he would have to do, was how it plagued his dreams.

Realizing he had such a… corrupted, perverted dream about _Noah_ , Rex grew embarrassed and his face warmed. He blamed it on decadent show of how Noah cajoled with the guys in the club.

He sighed heavily.

 _That was some crazy investigation alright._

No wonder Providence Intel never found out any news about the trade ring –cajoling with the perps the way Noah did, wasn't exactly Providence forte –they were better trained at battle expeditions and rescue operations.

And dear lord –his temples continued pounding like a sledgehammer was going through his head. _Bloody hangover._

Rex sat up slowly, cradling his forehead, then looked down on himself, feeling an odd stickiness and dampness in his pants. His eyes balled in horror and he cursed when he realized he had come.

Luckily, Bobo had moved away so Rex quickly grabbed the cushion off the couch and held it over his groin, trying to hide that dark, damp patch. It was amazing how wet his thick, navy jeans had become and Rex wondered in chagrin just how much he had ejaculated.

"Right, how can I miss it," Rex finally replied in a weak voice.

 _Damn! I can't believe I was out so long._ Rex cursed to himself, upset that time had passed so quickly. He was going to have to leave for Club Staizer again, like he and Noah had planned –but he really wasn't ready to go through a repeat of yesterday's show. He was going to have to stomach the sight of Noah getting cosy with pervs a second time –and Rex just hated even the thought of it.

"Well, I wouldn't know, since you were so _engrossed_ in your dream you wouldn't wake no matter how many times your alarm rang. Which was why I kicked you out of the couch," Bobo paused and turned round, giving him a critical eye that sent the hairs on Rex's neck to stand on its ends, "You must have had some _crazy_ time last night, huh?"

Suddenly, Rex had a bad feeling and asked shakily, "Uh, Bobo, how long have you been in here?"

"Long enough to know you're at my beck and call unless you want me spilling your dream to Noah or anyone else," Bobo answered with an evil grin.

* * *

Rex wasn't sure if he could look at his best friend straight in the eye after such a sinful dream. It plagued Rex whilst he changed into fresh clothes. And all through the flight over, his throat was dry like chalk and his hands were clammy with nervousness. Rex forced himself to calm his nerves for over the thousandth time that night, but he still couldn't keep himself from jumping when Noah called out to him.

He steeled himself as he turned around to meet his friend, forcing back the erotic face he had seen in his dream earlier that afternoon. At least Noah was wearing his favorite green jacket, looking more like his usual self, otherwise, Rex wasn't sure where to look without being reminded of Noah's sexy side.

Noah could tell his smile cracked, because he frowned and asked if there was something wrong.

"Nothing, just that we're walking into the dog pound again," Rex quickly gave an excuse. Well, not like he could actually admit to Noah that he had a wet dream about him, which was odd. It must be that the revelation of Noah being gay was still a lot to take in, which was why Rex had such a crazy dream.

"Where's Annie?" Rex asked, noticing she was missing.

"Last minute project meeting, so she couldn't come."

"Oh, she must be pretty bummed."

"Not really," Noah shrugged, "Alexa wasn't free to meet her anyway, at least, that's what she told me."

Rex was suddenly curious if Noah had hung out with Alexa before. Were Annie and Alexa his only gay friends? Who else did Noah know?

Noah gave him a lopsided smile when Rex asked.

"What is this? An interrogation?"

"I guess, I mean, I wanna know how it's like for you people."

Noah made a face.

"Hey, don't say it like we're a different species, okay? We're just regular people, only attracted to the same sex."

"Okay, I got it," Rex shoved his hands into his pants and smiled sheepishly.

They talked as they waited outside in the queue, which was longer than yesterday. Rex was relieved things seemed completely normal between them, and that he could hold himself properly instead of stuttering all over like the bunch of nerves he was feeling inside. It seemed almost like yesterday's melodrama of confessions, tears and hugs were a faraway dream that had never happened.

Fat chance though. It _had_ happened. But as how it always was with the both of them, Rex seemed to be able to just naturally accept it and didn't make a big hoo-ha out of it, just as easily as how Noah accepted him being an EVO freak.

Rex almost calmed down as the wait continued. When they finally got in, Rex was wowed by the Saturday crowd, which seemed to cram every corner of the club.

Standing on his toes, Rex could see above the sea of heads that the bar was full.

"Damn! No escape for me."

Noah laughed, reading his mind.

"C'mon then, let's just join the dance."

Rex was hesitant.

"I don't want any ass grabbing or get molested again."

Noah smirked and started unzipping his green bomber jacket.

"Silly, that's only going to happen to _me_."

Rex took a sharp intake of breath, eyeing Noah with an incredulous gaze as he unveiled his _fuck-me_ top that was full of holes.

Rex pointed a shaky finger and stammered incomprehensible words, trying without success to string a proper sentence that would express suitable outrage over Noah's fishnet tee.

Finally, after gulping enough intakes of air to extinguish the flames that sprung within this chest, Rex found a suitable comment.

"What the hell are you _wearing_? It's either the fisherman threw the net over you thinking to catch a merman, or you just walked right into one."

Noah narrowed his gaze and lightly smacked his shoulder.

"Shut up, Rex, don't make fun of me. I didn't want to wear this stupid top either, okay? I'm just trying to get in with the traders. You can't expect them to set up operations in a gay bar and not be gay."

Rex felt worse hearing that Noah was hoping to seduce more of them. Rex cast a look of utmost disapproval at Noah's tee, imagining that no doubt, the plentiful holes would give those pervs easier access to his nipples.

 _Oh god._ On that thought, Rex immediately averted his gaze from his chest, where Noah's nipples played peek-a-boo under the netting fabric.

"Noah, I wasn't making fun of you," Rex said in exasperation, struggling to find the words, "It's just I've never seen you like this. Are you sure you are completely cool with this? I know you're gay, but it can't mean that any guy is fine by you."

Noah stared at him like he was stupid. Then came the clout on Rex's head –the one where Noah gave in extreme cases of annoyance at Rex's stupidity.

"Are you an idiot? Of course not!" Noah hissed, "You think I'll shake my hips to any Tom, Dick or Harry? C'mon!" Noah scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"If it wasn't for the fact that this is the only way to get the leads we need to bust the trading ring, I wouldn't have dressed up like a man-whore."

Rex promptly burst into laughter at that point, finding it absolutely funny how Noah described his immoral dressing.

"Man-whore? Is there even such a person?" Rex asked, waggling his brows.

"Oh, you wouldn't believe it," Noah deadpanned, head shaking.

"Anyway, c'mon, are we gonna dance, or what?"

Rex swallowed hard, suddenly nervous. He hadn't exactly got himself ready for this. Noah probably just wanted to pass the time until they spot the trader from the day before. But Rex wanted to avoid dancing with Noah because his overactive imagination was playing out an erotic Noah humping against his hips. Hell fire would rain down on him if it happened for real and he was worried shitless.

Then minutes passed and reality settled in, so Rex relaxed.

There was no humping, no roaming hands, no gluing their bodies together, no kissing and definitely, no moaning.

It was just a casual, regular dance between buddies, with Noah and him bopping heads and shaking their shoulders and bodies with decent space in between them. They'd danced like this when they went clubbing before at other places, so it felt so normal that Rex nearly forgot they were in gay club.

He was only rudely reminded by it whenever wicked hands found their way to Noah's bum or over his chest. Rex was quick to smack them off, bare his teeth at them and spin Noah out of their reach. Noah howled in laughter every time that happened, prompting Rex to laugh along with him.

Rex had such a good time, he didn't even think twice about putting his arms around Noah's waist when a slow song came on. Noah's arm went around his neck and they started rocking together in sync, faces drawing closer.

Rex had hung out with Noah so many times, getting close, having their arms over one another, or hugging, that this didn't make him feel uncomfortable. In fact, it felt so natural, that Rex was amused with himself for getting so worried in the first place.

Then he jolted, attacked by a creepy hand on his shoulder. Rex only shrugged it off lightly, refraining from any violent displays of rejection. As Noah had said before, the less conspicuous he acted, the more they could find out about the trade ring.

"Hey there, buddy, I've never seen you around," the guy who sported a piercing on his eyebrow, was undeterred, sidling up next to Rex and standing so close that he could smell his cigarette breath.

Rex wrinkled his nose and turn sideways slightly.

"Yea, we're first timers. Just came to check out the scene."

"Hmm, yea? Well, do you like what you see? Because I sure am."

Rex felt a shiver of disgust run through him under the other's snaking eyes. The guy snaked another hand towards him, but Noah smacked it away and sandwiched himself in between them.

"Sorry, but hands off –he's with me," Noah snapped in an icy cold tone.

Over Noah's shoulder, Rex saw the guy lower his gaze towards Noah's chest then back up at level with Noah's face. His gaze hardened.

"You lie, he isn't into a slut like you. And neither am I."

Rex bristled and wrangled the neckline of the guy's tee.

"Listen, don't you dare insult my friend again or I will put your lights out. And F.Y.I, I'm non-gay, so I'm not into creeps like you, or anyone else here, so buzz off."

Rex released him, pushing him off, glaring at him with an incensed gaze.

The guy stumbled a bit but quickly regained his footing. Then he gave a small laugh, crooking an eyebrow.

"Oh, a Stiff, I see, so you're here for something else."

Rex straightened on his words and flickered a gaze to Noah.

 _Another trader?_ They exchanged a wordless guess.

The guy closed the gap to Rex.

"Well, consider this your lucky day, or in fact, my lucky day. I know where to get the patch, if you want, for a small price."

Noah snorted and turned to go, grabbing Rex's arm with him.

"We don't need it. I've already got ours from a friend."

"Oh ho, I know where you get it from. From the guys in the VIP room, right? Well, those guys don't sell cheap. But I have a direct connection –can get you twice the product for half the price."

Noah froze and exchanged another look with Rex.

Boy, were they truly lucky –another trader, closer up the chain to the direct supply.

Noah turned back around and Rex watched with a mix of horror and fascination as he switched to seductive mode, lids lowering and lips curling into a deviant smile.

Noah curled his fingers around the other's wrist and pulled it to rest behind his back.

"Well, why didn't you say so earlier? I'd be interested to know how much you're selling for."

The guy smirked and pulled his hand away.

"Nice try, blonde, I have to admit, you're hot, but I'm into tall, tanned handsome types, especially if they're Stiffs."

Rex felt his blood run cold on those words, and was flabbergasted when the guy turned back his leery attention on him.

"So what do you say, Stiff? A dance?"

"Oh great, the type who digs non-gays," Noah muttered frustratedly under his breath, combing his hair back.

"Just lay off, my friend isn't going to entertainment –"

"Sure," Rex cut in on Noah's agitated remark, "Just one dance, then you'll show me the goods."

Noah shot Rex an incredulous look. He flattened himself against Rex and pushed him backwards, whispering harshly into his ear.

"Rex! What the fuck you think you're doing?"

"Same thing you did. I can't leave you to do all the sacrificing on your own," Rex pointedly replied in a soft tone so the other guy wouldn't hear.

Looking at the big picture, Rex forced himself not to think of it as a big deal.

"No Rex, you don't get it. Guys like him –they're sick. They love to torture straight guys. Once they pick their target, it's not going to end up a simple dance," Noah said softly through clenched teeth.

"Right, got it, I'll play along and see how it goes. I mean, if you could do it, so can I."

Noah fisted Rex's jacket, face contorted with worry.

"Rex, I'm serious, listen to me –he is going to play with you, break you and fuck you upside down."

Rex squared his jaw.

"Well then, I'll just have to use the ace in my sleeve before that happened."

Minutes later, Rex was regretting his bravado.

He clenched his teeth and bit his tongue to keep from swearing and crying out over the sicko's abuse. Rex had never felt so humiliated in his life –he'd been grabbed, pinched, fondled and smacked all over.

And the guy was panting heavily like a pig, breathing against Rex's face so he was subjected to the foulest cigarette stench poisoning his lungs, disrupting normal airflow to his respiratory tract. Rex was sure he was going to suffocate and die before he gathered any lead from him.

Heaven remind him why he allowed himself to be violated in such a revolting manner. Then he remembered –because he promised to help Gabe and Michael, and because busting the trade ring would be a good cause for the rest of the population that was still infected with nanites.

God damn it, Rex should be awarded with a Samaritan award for the lengths he would go through to help people.

The worst was that Noah was a couple of steps away, watching him. It was like their fates had exchanged from the previous night, and it would have been ironic and funny, if it weren't for the painful expression plastered on Noah's face.

Just facing Noah's anguished look was enough to make Rex feel like he was fucked ten times over by a runaway train.

 _Stop looking at me that way._

Rex thought miserably to himself, tormented by his friend's agony. Yet at the same time, it was the only thing he could draw from to console himself, knowing that Noah was equally miserable to see Rex suffer such violation.

Then the lecherous trader from last night reappeared, cupping Noah's ass. Noah had nary a second to throw Rex one last worried look before he was waltzed away.

Rex could read it clearly in Noah's gaze. _Be careful._

Well, perhaps someone should warn the other guy instead, because Rex was just about running out of patience.

"Heh, looks like your friend got the attention he wanted. Too bad for him, spreading his thighs will only get him a small return with that group."

Rex's senses prickled, picking up on the guy's words.

"That group? Aren't you all friends?"

The guy snorted.

"They're a new gang trying to muscle their way into the trade. But if you ask me, they've got too many possy –gives smaller cuts, you know? But cut away all the middle men, and you get the lion's share."

"Huh, like you?" Rex pressed.

"Yup," the sicko announced proudly.

"Daring, aren't you? Don't you worry that they'll catch you poaching their customers?"

The sicko snorted.

"I could shit all over on their turf without them noticing."

Rex couldn't help but chuckle.

Noah was right, people really do have their wits clouded when they were sexually excited.

"Anyway, now that our audience is gone, why don't we move on to the good part," the sicko gave a leery smile, disgusting Rex further, "Ever been to the back rooms?"

Rex felt his skin crawl, but he managed a false smile.

"Well, you don't say. No, I've never. But if you can show me where you get the goods, I might be in a good enough mood to show you some private time."

* * *

About an hour later, Rex was seated along the barricade alongside the road, in the middle of an empty street, about ten blocks down from the club, waiting for Noah to join him.

At the sound of running footsteps, Rex turned his head and dropped his feet to the ground, waving and smiling at him.

"Rex, what is going on? You said it was an emergency," Noah said between pants, bending over and resting his palms on his knee.

Then hearing some muffled noise to the side, he turned his head into the alley behind them and found the sicko whom Rex had gagged and tied up.

Noah gave a look of dread.

"Crap, Rex, what is this?"

"Relax, I didn't do anything to jeopardize our investigation," Rex assured him on hearing the panic in his tone, "This guy had let on earlier that he was working alone."

Rex briefly filled Noah in. The guy had direct connections to the main supplier and didn't operate in the same group as the others. Also, the group operating in the club were not aware that he was also a trader like them. Hence, Rex could lure him out without worrying about alerting the others.

Instead of going to the back rooms with the sicko, Rex very subtly, manipulated his nanites, and influenced the guy to walk right out the club and down the street till Rex could finally move in with his threats.

And boy, though Six was no fun to get stuck with, it pays to grow up under him –Rex has picked up a few tricks on intimidating people and getting them to talk.

It was underhanded and awful but Rex didn't have a choice –desperate times called for desperate measures and there was no way in hell he was gonna let the sicko continue to do disgusting things to him.

Rex was worried that Noah would criticize his actions, but Noah nodded approvingly and smirked, offering up a hand for a hi-five.

"Great work, Rex, now we can head straight for the big guns and send this perp to prison."

Rex nodded.

"Too bad the rest of the trade circle will still be on the loose. If only we can get them all in one swoop."

Noah patted his shoulder.

"Hey, at least if we catch the main supplier, the rest of them won't be able to continue the trade. Besides, I secretly took pictures of their faces. We can pass that on to the police."

Noah showed a nifty camera he'd clipped onto the collar of his tee. Rex was amazed, never having realized it. He thought it was a pendant of some sort.

"Where did u get it?"

Noah laughed. "I won it off a card game from Bobo."

"Right, and he probably swiped it or cheated it out from the weapons development team."

They shared a few sniggers at the mention of their mischevious friend before Rex turned around to face the sicko, planting his hands on his hips.

"Now, where did you say the manufacturing factory was again?"

* * *

DO YOU LIKE IT? Hehe, I thought it was about time to add some naughty bits here and there. I know it's not full blown, but the full smex will come later, I promise! La la la~

Sorry about the revelation thing with Noah... as in like, making him 'gay.' Maybe some of you prefer that he is only 'gay' for Rex and that he should be 'pure', only doing stuff with Rex etc etc. But this serves an important role in the relationship development in this story. Which you will see as the story progresses... so pls be patient to read more!

And just to give a better illustration, the club is supposed to be similar to those from the show, QAF, so like yea... hehe my Noah here is also a bit more raw and 'liberal' in his 'hook ups'. But ultimately, he's still a regular guy - can't expect them to be celibate monks lol.

…Also, I made Annie lesbian, hur hur. Sorry if any of you didn't like it, but it fit more naturally in this story this way.

 **Footnotes:**

*Feakins / Wig :

He's the guy who can nullify the active powers of nanites. He appears first in "Deadzone", episode 48. Rex and Noah coincidently bumped into him and went on a run with him to keep Black Knight from capturing him. They ended up wearing disguises and Noah was dressed up as a blonde chic, which I thought was a terribly, slashable piece of morsel! 3 *hints* hints* Which means I may include this point again in later chapters… heh heh.


	12. Busted

So...uh... first off my apologies to everyone who was reading... I haven't updated in 6 months and I have absolutely no excuse for that. I'm terrible I know. I hope I can make it up. T^T

(for my friends who last read my previous chpt 6 months back... here's a short recap of what happened in previous chpt: Rex and Noah was investigating an illegal trafficking ring that was dealing with nanite-enchancing patches. Their vigilante uncover work have brought them to the manufacturing hide out of the group - so yea... hope this will satisfy you and is enjoyable... the follow up will be soon! I PROMISE! ) 

* * *

**C** **hapter Twelve: Busted**

(Rex and Noah closes in on the trading gang)

Rex watched the manufacturing operations from the metal beams hanging above about thirty feet off the ground. Rex and Noah crouched on the beams, hidden in the shadows in a sort of old warehouse fitted with small operation facilities and equipment. Down below, there were about a dozen thugs or so, managing the operation, and armed with weapons.

The fluorescent lights sat directly beneath the beams, giving them plenty of clarity of the happenings below whilst affording some obscurity in the shadows and the dimness of the loft. Hence, they could observe the operations below without being noticed.

Set alongside the inner wall were five glass cylinders about 10 feet tall, filled with a pinkish fluid that Rex and Noah guessed was the nanites enhancement chemical. It was connected to a few other machines via pipes and tubes with steam valves for several yards, siphoning the chemical to a single giant pressing machine.

The heavy metal slab measuring nearly six feet, stomped up and down, revealing a continuous line of white patches that rolled out from a ten feet conveyer belt. The patches were then stacked together at the end of the belt by a couple of thugs.

Noah and Rex kept observation for several minutes, remaining silent so they wouldn't be noticed. Though Noah perched beside him, breathing quietly, still as a gargoyle, Rex could see from the rapid rise and fall of his chest that Noah was pumped with excitement. He could feel Noah's body heat rise off him and it melded with his own heat, wrapping him like an oven.

Adrenaline running at full course, Rex could barely keep still. His body screamed for action. He bumped thighs with Noah as a signal to move in.

"Wait," Noah hissed softly in an urgent tone, gripping his shoulder, "We haven't talked about the plan."

"Plan? What plan? –Oh." Rex realized and smiled sheepishly at Noah's icy glare.

Body running with a wave of adrenaline blood coupled with excited, charged nanites, Rex tended to forget the big picture and usually rushed into action. He got better at holding himself in check through the countless past missions he'd been through. But today, he was mondo-charged –he could feel it.

It must be because of Noah –it'd been a long time since they've been in a mission together. Rex missed it –it was fun with Noah around, nothing like beating down bad guys with his best friend and favourite side kick. Good thing Noah was always the more cool headed one between the two of them.

"Remember," Noah whispered through gritted teeth, brows narrowed warningly, "We have to keep this low key or Providence will find out."

Rex nodded.

"Got it, so you take out those containers and me, the bad guys."

Noah's frown deepened, hinting that Rex said something wrong.

"No? Well then, I'll take out those containers and you, the bad guys."

"Rex, we know that stuff activates nanites. So you think it's a good idea to release those stuff onto those guys below? We'll be turning them all into full blown EVOs!" Noah whispered in a chiding tone.

"Oh, good point. Didn't think of that. Okay, so then I'll distract them while you find the switch to shut down the equipment. Then once we get them nicely tied up, I'll get those containers out and raze them in the incineration plant. Now, how does that sound?"

Noah nodded, finally agreeing but he cocked an eyebrow, saying, "Sounds better, but you forgot one thing –you can connect to the electrical wirings yourself and shut down the whole power."

"Right!" Rex smacked his forehead as he exclaimed softly, "Thanks for the reminder."

"Amazing how you know me better than myself!" Rex grinned to mirror Noah.

"Hey, that's why I'm your best man," Noah gave a mock-flippant wave in the air before he gave his arm gentle nudge.

"Now get going."

Rex then tiptoed along the beams that intersected one another, all the way to the wall where the electric cables ran across. He fiddled with them, making a small slice alongside the insulation covers.

He gingerly touched the live wires, tuning his nanite charges to the same frequency so he wouldn't get electrocuted to his death. A surge of energy rushed into him, like a waterfall gushing into a basin –he, being the vessel, the containment unit, he was filled to the brim with electricity that threatened to burst out of him.

He quickly diverted the current, became it, followed it with his senses –it was hard to explain how he could –but he located the main power supply and shut it off.

Blackness engulfed the warehouse at the same time that the electric current within Rex died.

Shouts erupted from the guys below, alarmed at what had happened. Rex rose shakily from his crouching position and steadied his breath as he took a few precious moments to recover –there was a lot to deal with whenever he connected with a live circuit, which was why he rarely did it. It was sort of like speeding through an Olympic race – the body could withstand the tremendous stress for only that small stretch before needing to catch a quick breather.

The thugs became blind in the dark, and fumbled about in the darkness. Rex on the other hand, could make out their silhouettes with his slightly superior vision. Recovering quickly, he snickered under his breath until he made out a raised arm in his direction.

On high alert, Rex pulled his goggles over his eyes for better night vision and ran precariously atop the narrow iron beams. He nearly missed the firing rounds that pelted a line across the wall, chasing after him.

 _Shit!_ Rex realized that one of them must have night-vision glasses too.

"There – on the beams! Open fire!"

"Shit, how did they get in here?" a guy below shouted, followed by a chorus of angry yells and exclamations.

Rex panicked and glanced towards Noah, who looked tensed, remaining deadly still against the pillar. Noah wasn't able to see crap in this blackness so wouldn't be able to dodge shit.

Rex dropped down over twenty feet into a roll.

"Jump Noah!" Rex yelled as he sprinted to below him.

Noah did not hesitate and blindly leapt, landing right into Rex's arms.

"Nice catch."

Rex could hear Noah's relief, and grinned.

"I know, and I'm beginning to feel like this is some sort of déjà vu," Rex couldn't help but remark even in the midst of danger as he was instantly reminded how not too long along, back before Summer, Rex saved him in the same manner at the other warehouse where Blaster Prince was thrashing.

"Yea, so? Your point is?"

Rex didn't get the chance to reply –senses prickling, he ducked, barely missing the gunshot that whizzed over their heads. The witty back and fro that is signature of their conversation, will have to wait – Rex snapped back to two hundred percent seriousness.

"Stay here," he instructed Noah, bringing him behind one of the fat concrete pillars.

Then Rex lunged towards the nearest thug with the night vision glasses, yanking his arm upwards and twisting his wrist, causing the other to cry aloud in pain and drop his gun.

"Bastard!"

Multiple running footsteps could be heard and Rex whirled round to see over dozen more men run in from the side entrance.

Rex hurriedly plowed through the ones stationed around the conveyer belt, who were helpless against his attacks, being handicapped as they were by their lack of night vision. He focused on kicking the guns out of their hands and knocking them off their feet first.

Suddenly, the lights were back on –probably a back-up generator that someone kicked in, _damn it_ –and the thugs were able to zoom in on Rex and Noah. Nearly all were curled up into pathetic balls on the rough cement flooring, groaning in pain. Rex however, couldn't take time admiring his own quick, handiwork a handful still remained unscathed.

The five thugs who remained standing all heads turned towards them and unleashed bullets of fury, firing their guns at the both of them.

On instinct, Rex leapt over eight feet into the air, dodging the bullets whilst Noah remained shielding himself behind the pillar. A thug ran over, closing in on him, but able to see now, Noah gave him a spinning kick, knocking him over backwards.

Then Noah bravely jumped out from his hiding place and tackled another guy, dishing out moves that were worthy of Oscar acclaim, putting the guy down within ten seconds flat. _Damn!_ Rex was blown away as he caught sight of his buddy from the corner of his eyes whilst he ploughed his fists into another opponent. He had no idea that Noah was such a kung fu expert – who unfortunately didn't have eyes at the back of his head.

Rex leapt off from the ground with the help of his nanite-charged legs and in a nano-second, faster than he would warn Noah, he landed right behind the last thug who was swinging his rifle towards the back of Noah's head. Rex lifted an arm to block the attack and dealt an uppercut, sending the man stumbling backwards.

Noah swung around, looking stunned at the quick defense, then shot Rex a face full of relief and thanks. Rex nodded, and would have hi-fived his buddy, if the noisy shuffling of footsteps and yells weren't heard.

More guys appeared –probably the back up that a thug must have radioed in, running in from the large main shutter at the front. They quickly had the both of them surrounded, keeping them pinned with their guns aimed dead straight at them.

Rex eyed them warily, counting off their numbers –there must be at least fifty over guys in the warehouse, not counting the other dozen or so who were beginning to pull themselves up after recovering from Rex's blows.

" _Shit!_ " Rex cursed under his breath, "I should've hit them harder."

"Could you?" Noah heard him and gave a pointed look and a raise brow, disbelieving his statement, "You're just a big O'teddy with boxing gloves."

Rex couldn't refute to that. They both knew that it was a given that he was relatively soft on those thugs –they weren't EVO, and wouldn't have even survived if Rex went full force.

"Besides, why are you worried? Because I'm not," Noah chipped in, lips curling into a smirk at the most inappropriate of times. And just like that, Rex lost the tension, reminded by the meaning under Noah's simple sentence: he was Rex Salazar – Nanite Master.

That's right, guns couldn't trap him. And he'll be damned if he'd let Noah get hurt over such nobodies.

But before he dropped his act as a normal human, a guy with a huge tattoo stretching from his jaw down his neck that disappeared under his collar, stepped forward from the circle around them, eyeing them with a fairly impressed expression.

"You punks, that was actually some good move," he drawled in an approving tone with a small smirk, "I know you couldn't have found this place alone. Now tell me, who are you running for?"

Rex exchanged glances with Noah, and both agreed to hold back for just a while longer since this guy looked like the man in charge. Perhaps they could wean out info here that they might not be able to squeeze out if he was caught by Providence.

"No one graffiti-man, we heard the nanite patch brings dope cash and we wanted the coffers – big time, so we did our own research," Noah reported somewhat flippantly, prompting Rex to burst out laughing at his acidic choice of words in his best, fake-nonchalant tone. That was classic Noah for you.

"Yea on that note, you may wanna laser that off – that's the fugliest ink I've ever seen. Or did your kid do that when you were sleeping?" Rex couldn't help but taunt and was punished with a violent prod between his shoulder blade as an underling jabbed him with his gun.

"Watch your trap, punk!" the guy warned from behind.

"Hey, don't get testy just because you don't agree with me. Besides, I wasn't talking about you," Rex defended.

Tattoo man on the other hand, wasn't riled. He merely waved his underling back and continued.

"My rivals are too god damn chicken to hook up with this, and two lone wolfs don't go as well as a single one. I smell a pack behind the two of you, so you best cough up your group or my boys will have to rough you up."

Rex snorted and wanted to retort, but Noah got ahead of him.

"Yea we have our own sources. Look, two heads are better than one. It's easy to bait the lone sellers and even easier to single out them other groups. Frankly speaking, you're the last group we've picked up on – have to say, your operation is quite smooth.

But they rest? They are all wayyy too obvious and not too smart either – didn't take long for us to wean them off their stash."

Tattoo guy knitted his brows together, clearly displeased with what he was hearing. Rex on the other hand, refrained from frowning to hide his confusion.

"How much stock have they got?" Tattoo man asked in a strained tone.

"Oh, you ought to have seen," Noah remarked in a factual tone, lifting both brows like it was an impressionable amount. Then he dropped his brows quickly and gave a bored look as he drawled on, "but then again, you could probably hit that numbers if you install more facilities. You know, to up your productivity."

When Tattoo man sucked in a heavy breath as a reply, veins on his forehead looking like it would pop, Noah cocked his head back slightly, looking thoughtful before he added on.

"You know, to come to think of it, oddly enough, their little factory operation is almost identical to yours, just in a bigger scale. Are you sure you're not like, in any way affiliated or something? Because the dope is working exactly the same too."

Rex was sure Tattoo man was grinding his teeth when he squared his jaw. And it was then that Rex got exactly what the hell Noah was doing.

Noah was feeding him misinformation in order to bait him. Rex refrained from giving his best friend a stupendous look of awe. It was likely just second-guessed theories that Noah was throwing, but either way, it seemed to be hitting Tattoo man right on the mark.

The agitated boss waved two fingers from behind him and seconds later, one of his thugs threw a fat bundle of patches at Rex and Noah's feet.

"You can have them, at my generosity. As many as you want – if I can crush the folks who're ripping off my formula."

"Your formula? You don't look like you've got the brains for Frankenstein juice," Rex threw in, catching in on Noah's trick.

"Yea, are you just mad you were double-traded? Maybe you should have bid a higher price for the alchemy secret," Noah added in without missing a beat.

Tattoo man gave a toothy smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"You two are smart asses eh? Well, let me give you a bigger offer – work for me. We need more guys with skills like yours."

Rex smirked and exchanged another glance with Noah that concluded the charades was finally over.

"Sorry, but I already have a job."

Then he beamed out an energy field from one palm, encasing him and Noah within it.

"What the –" Tattoo man started in shock, then clenched his teeth, recognition dawning on his face, "Shit, I remember him now –he's Rex –that kid with the nanite powers!"

"What kid? I'm twenty-one this year!" Rex jokingly reminded.

Rex wanted to laugh –six years on without appearing in the news since Providence lost media attention after his Worldwide Cure, and suckers had dared to forget his face.

"They're Providence –shoot them!"

The thugs opened fire, but as their bullets rebounded harmlessly off the force field, they stopped, faces in panic and started backing away.

"Go on, try to run," Rex taunted then flung out his powerful whip. He sent a small amount of charge through it and whipped it around in a half circle, sweeping the leader and his underlings off their feet whilst electrocuting them enough to numb their legs and weaken them.

Noah dashed off from Rex's side to take down the other thugs who had dodged his whip and were fleeing. From the corner of Rex's eyes, he saw Noah take an awesome leap, digging into a thug's back with his knee and knocking him down, then jumping off to tackle the next guy.

Rex continued to be amazed at the invisible springs beneath Noah's feet. Wasn't Noah supposed to be the regular human, and him the EVO?

"You imbeciles! Don't run away! Stop them!" the leader hollered in a coarse voice from the ground, "Use the patches!"

Emboldened, five of the thugs halted in their flight, ran towards the stacks of patches and slapped themselves with probably way more pieces than recommended, before Rex noticed what they had done.

"Holy crap!" Both Rex and Noah cursed loudly in unison and froze as they watched the nightmare quickly unfold before them.

* * *

next... ACTION COMING UP - RAWR! 


	13. Busted part 2

RAWR! Action starts here! immediate continuation from earlier chapter! Enjoy! ~~

* * *

 **Chapter Thirteen: Busted Part 2**

The five of them starting transforming just several feet from Noah, groaning and crying out in pain because of the mutation.

"Noah! Get away from them!" Rex hollered from a way off and bounded across the warehouse to where Noah was, eyeing the mutating fellows in dread.

Disgusting, squishing sounds of flesh tearing and reforming, of bones cracking and enlarging as they rapidly grew into new shapes, sent Rex's gut in queasy discomfort. Doesn't matter that Rex was seasoned to seeing this – he still wasn't completely desensitized. Something as horrifying as this shouldn't happen at all.

Those idiots probably didn't know the limits and went too far, smacking on too much patches.

"Noah, get back!" Rex reached his friend and started pushing him backwards.

In his frenzied worry, Rex forgot who it was that he was dealing with –Noah may be get scared shitless in scenarios like this, but he was no coward.

And Noah reminded Rex this when he ignored him, dashing forwards to grab hold of a coiled metal chain at the foot of the stacked goods. He wound the chain twice round the EVO that formed first and locked it around one of the legs of the conveyer belt.

That EVO, which still retained some semblance of human features, looked confused and roared angrily at being locked up. It struggled in futile against the chains, causing the metal to jingle and shriek noisily.

Rex would have smiled at Noah's quick thinking and crazy bravado, if one of the other EVOs didn't strike out at Noah, snapping Rex into action.

Finally, he didn't have to hold back –Rex pounded the horrifically transfigured, brownish face with his giant fist, sending the hulking EVO flying backwards. It crashed heavily onto the floor at the same time that the EVO next to it swung a spiky fist at Rex.

Rex blocked it with his nanite fist before it hit his side, but it punctured his metal fingers and sent it crumbling. Rex clenched his teeth and reared back, swinging his giant axes at the EVO. It met the deadly slices with its incredibly strong spikes and pitted strength against Rex.

Rex grinded his teeth against the wrestle, feet sliding backwards inch by inch, arms shaking slightly. He wanted to quickly cure it, but he couldn't drop his stance long enough to get a proper hand on its body.

The rest of the thugs and Tattoo man had all but fled at this point, closing the main hatch with a resounding thud, locking Rex and Noah in with the five EVOs. Rex blenched internally, knowing that they were more frightened off by their EVO colleagues than content to let them deal with Rex and Noah.

Out the corner of his eyes, he saw Noah catching the attention of the other two EVOs which had retained a more humanoid appearance. With not a second to lose, Noah picked off one of the several guns that the thugs had left thrown about in their urgent bid to escape. He quickly fired at the EVOs' limbs whilst running backwards. Those two EVOs roared in pain and slowed under Noah's barrage. His aim was impeccable –Noah had always shown an affinity for weapons, his aim hitting his target so many times that Rex was sure it were more than just lucky shots.

But Noah was quickly out of bullets and one of them got close enough to rake its claws across Noah. Rex froze, heart stopping for a fraction of a second before he realized that the EVO had only got Noah's jacket, tearing a few gashes diagonally across the front.

Noah glanced down and back up at the EVO, looking livid.

"You ass! That's my favorite jacket!"

Then Noah proceeded to give it a spinning kick, slamming his shin over the side of its head, causing it to keel over.

A smile tugged at the corner of Rex's lips. Noah was a force to be reckoned with when he was pissed, so he pitied the EVO for just a moment until another movement at the front caught his attention.

The brownish EVO that Rex knocked over earlier, picked itself up, but something looked horribly off. Its upper body was bent over backwards in an awkward manner, so it lumbered towards Rex with unsteady steps, its face completely disfigured like Rex's earlier punch had messed it up.

Then its arms stretched like malleable clay and gushed towards him and Spiky EVO at a high speed.

Rex was forced to jump backwards and he quickly blocked with his force field. Spiky EVO wasn't as quick to dodge, and was lugged across the grounds past Rex's vision as one clay arm continued spiraling and pushing it backwards at high speeds.

Rex couldn't afford the Spiky one any pity as the other clay arm that played tag with him, splayed out and engulfed his ball of protection, enveloping Rex in total darkness. Rex sent an electric charge to ripple across his force field, but the sludge remained caked over it, seemingly unaffected.

Then it pressed in, shrinking the space surrounding Rex such that he had to hunch. Rex cursed aloud, panicking as he felt the pressure against his energy field, crushing it smaller and smaller till Rex was forced to curl himself into a ball.

"God damn it! Get off!" Rex yelled and supercharged his nanites, blasting outwards with a powerful energy beam that disintegrated the sludge encasing his shield.

He panted, tired from the outburst, kneeling on the ground with his palms flat on the floor. The clay EVO was a splat against the far wall, the direct impact having sent it sailing across the factory to slam against the opposite side, dripping down in chunks onto the ground. The spiky one, which was too far to be hit by Rex's energy burst, became freed from the clay arm. But instead of going straight after Rex, it gave a strangled cry and hunched over, catching Rex's immediate attention.

Out from its back, rose multiple valleys of spikes. The mangled colors of red and dirty brown dripped from the tips as the spikes grew in height, tearing a gut-curdling, wretched scream from the EVO that was tortured by it's own devices pushing out from under its own flesh and blood.

Rex's blood ran cold at the horrific sight as the spikes increased till it filled the EVO's entire back, rivalling that of a porcupine, till the EVO's knees were bent under the weight. And then it slowly straightened, rearing its back.

Senses tingling, Rex kicked off with a jet blaster that he formed atop his back, jetting parallel to the floor towards Noah, who was still fighting off the two humanoid EVOs at the far side, even though he had ran out of bullets. Rex didn't have time to admire Noah's agile moves and powerful jumps whilst he bounded and darted around them, aptly landing punches and kicks while dodging their attacks.

Rex slammed the two humanoid EVOs out of the way and caught Noah under his knees.

"What the –what are you doing? I have them under control!" Noah exclaimed in surprise.

In reply, Rex beamed out another shield that surrounded them right before a torrent of spikes flew towards them.

Noah swallowed a big gulp of air as he stared over Rex's shoulders. The twenty-inches long shards of death rained over them and struck the ground in scatters. Luckily they harmlessly rebounded off Rex's force field. Noah then pulled back slightly to regard Rex.

"That was a nice save. Remind me to thank you later."

As soon as those words flew out his mouth, they were beat down against the ground by heavy muck coagulating over Rex's shield again.

"Argh!" Rex cursed aloud as the clay EVO clasped them in within its giant fists and whammed them down onto the concrete ground repeatedly. He didn't expect that clay EVO to recover so quickly.

Rex braced his arm to hold the force field steady, keeping them centered within the sphere, but he strained from the effort. Meanwhile, Noah was also helpless, with his arms and legs wrapped around him like hugging a bolster, to keep himself from rocketing up and down because of the momentum.

They were in a serious bind –Rex couldn't repeat his earlier trick least he accidently hurts Noah. And while they were stuck in their current predicament, the main hatch suddenly opened up and a couple of thugs scuttled back in to retrieve the patches. A lorry entered once the hatch was fully raised, and another group was detaching the cylinders from the rest of the equipment, wheeling the vats towards the awaiting vehicle.

Unfortunately, the clay EVO and spikey EVO had gone too far rouge to retain their human consciousness. They turned their attention to those guys and started attacking them instead, sending a chorus of curses and yells to fill the warehouse. But it was also a lucky twist for Rex, as when the clay EVO turned its attention to the other thugs, it drastically reduced the pressure around Rex's force field, giving him leverage to drop his shield and slice the muck around them with his giant twin axes.

Rex landed lightly on his feet whilst the sludge broke apart, falling as harmless blobs that splatted around them. Noah wrinkled his nose in disgust as he lowered his feet to the ground, releasing his hold around Rex.

"Eww, I'm glad that didn't touch me."

Then they both leapt backwards in opposite directions in intuition, right before an array of spikes staked a line down between them, at where they should have been skewered.

Rex swept a jittery gaze across the warehouse at the chaos taking place.

The spikey EVO was launching its spikes in disarray, decking the place with stakes that made it look like hell like earth. The clay EVO was swallowing thugs with its mucky limbs, contorting itself into a giant mass of sludge that no longer resembled an anthropic form. The thugs retreated their positions but managed to load one of the cylinders into the lorry as the two humanoid EVOs still retained their human consciousness and were protecting them.

Noah shot him a weary, wordless glance before dashing off towards the lorry. In drastic situations like these, they could always somehow read each other's minds with just a look. They both knew that the trade gang must not get away with the concoction or they would be able to continue their operations elsewhere. So in silent agreement, Noah was to go after to try to stop them, while Rex takes care of the EVOs here.

As soon as Noah disappeared out the hatch, sliding along underneath before it shut, Rex focused his attention back on the four EVOs that were battling each other.

It was an all-out brawl –spikes flying and sludge spewing about everywhere. In an odd twist of fate, the two humanoid EVOs remained in the warehouse and seemed to form a temporary truce with Rex, attacking the other two rouge EVOs with their mutated limbs. The fifth EVO who was chained up earlier, was freed when a spike cut the metal chain, and it joined Rex's side.

"Be careful! Don't let them hit the cylinders!" Rex barked, eyeing the fight nervously.

The place was completely thrashed –beams had fallen in parts, littering the place, while vasts chucks of concrete pillars had broken off, unveiling the metal skeletal-foundation beneath. The conveyer belts were dismantled and tossed aside, and the pressing machine had been smashed. Only the giant cylinders magically remained unscathed. They were likely made of reinforced glass so it remained resilient even as chunks of debris flew towards it and hit its surface.

Still, Rex was sure the spikes would crack the glass and heaven forbid what would happen to any of them if the concoction flowed out and enveloped them. Hence, Rex was moving double time to block the spikes before it hit the cylinders.

Finally catching an opening, thanks to the other three humanoid EVOs that were taking up most of the attention of the other two, Rex curled his whip around the spikey EVO and electrocuted it.

It gave a great bellow before collapsing, finally down.

Then they co-operated to rescue the few thugs who were previously swallowed by the clay EVO. Rex plunged multiple whips into its sludge form to dig out the thugs while the three humanoid EVOs plummented the clay EVO with punches. Their punches didn't seem to do any damage to the Clay EVO, but they certainly got its attention and had to dodge back and fro in a mad dance to avoid being swallowed up as well. At least it gave Rex the chance to pull out the four guys he felt inside, who coughed and sputtered mud on the floor, rasping for breath.

The clay EVO made an angry noise at losing its captives and turned its full attention on him, blasting a thick sludge at him that knocked him to the wall and kept him plastered there in its sticky goo.

Rex was caught off guard so wasn't in time to block the torrent. He sputtered and coughed at the onslaught coming at him in a continuous stream, before his mouth was also covered with the sludge, and he was silenced. He could hardly breathe as his chest was plummeted by the force that came at him like a waterfall gushing from great heights.

Rex tried to free himself with his razor sharp axes, but they were stuck midway the slice and he couldn't get his constructs free no matter how he budged. While he struggled, he caught sight of the other three EVOs rolling out another cylinder towards another exit at the side, with their human counterparts slung over their shoulders, and swore at them inwardly.

It should come as no surprise at where their loyalties lie –they probably helped him at first so that they could save another one of their precious concoction. But at least, Rex conceded that they were humane enough to rescue their own gang members from the clay EVO before escaping.

Just as Rex was all out of ideas and praying for a miracle to happen, the hatch burst open and the lorry bounded in, tearing through the metal door and plowing it aside as it race further in. Rex was just wondering which crazy gang member was back for more of the vats when Noah jumped out the door, landing on the ground in a roll.

Stuck against the wall, Rex could only watch in horror as the vehicle crashed straight into the clay EVO and drove it backwards till it smashed the last remaining cylinder, causing the liquid to spill all over the splatted EVO.

A deep rumble sounded, so powerful that the entire warehouse seemed to shake, even cracking the semi-solidified sludge plastering Rex on the wall. No longer having fresh goo raining on him, Rex frantically hacked away at the binds encasing him and dropped to his feet, bounding down to the middle of the warehouse to join Noah, who watched with wide eyes at the terrible scene that unfolded.

The clay EVO grew, and grew and grew in size, losing all form and shape now, just expanding in a massive, hulking mess, stretching thick, mucus-limbs to all sides of the warehouse, reaching till the ceiling.

"I. did. Not. Plan. This," Noah swore, tone dead and heavy.

"Yea, about that, remind me not to let you drive – ever," Rex joked, but there was no humor to his tone.

The other three EVOs halted at the side and have also turned around to view the transformation, seemingly stupefied.

Then it suddenly shot out a slobbering branch of sludge towards them, sticking to the cylinder and reining it back toward itself. The three EVOs didn't stay to watch on any longer and turned on their heel, disappearing out the side hatch.

Rex cursed aloud, knowing what it wanted. It must be acting on primal, base instincts and needs. It must have recognized that the vat contained the juice that would make it stronger. Rex leapt towards the outstretched limb and hacked it with his giant sword, but his weapon harmlessly went in, or rather, was being swallowed by the intangible, malleable form.

It climbed upwards along Rex's hand, startling him. Rex immediately unleashed as much electric charge as he could. Bluish electrical threads and sparks ran all along the surface, and the air crackled with energy, but it dissipated within a few seconds, seemingly not dealing any damage or pain to the EVO.

"Damn it! It's still shock-free!" Rex yelled in despair.

There was no use trying to cure it either –he could sense too many raging nanites within and experience told him that it was already incurable. And he would cause more harm and trouble for himself if he tried to extract those rampant nanites into himself.

So he tried to shoot out his energy field with his other arm, but the sludge spread across and crushed his construct before he could protect himself.

Much to his horror and disgust, the sludge slowly devoured him, crawling from his arms and his legs and up around the rest of him, its hold so strong that Rex was completely helpless. He heard Noah scream his name and on worried reflex, he shot his gaze towards his friend. He watched him sprint to the side of the wall and hit a lever upwards, causing the sprinklers to burst into life, spraying a fountain of water over the entire warehouse.

And then the sludge enveloped his head, leaving him in sickening, suffocating darkness and a pressure that threatened to squish him like a rag doll.

Rex could vaguely hear Noah's frantic screams, but his exact words were muffled by the cake over his ears. Amidst the pain and anxiety, Rex racked his brain to figure out what Noah was trying to tell him. It must have something to do with him turning on the sprinklers.

And then it dawned on him.

The sludge-like EVO was immune to his electric shocks, but with the water raining down, it was wet and could be more susceptible to his charges. Praying that Noah's plan would work, Rex dug into his Omega-1 and forced it to generate rapid numbers of new nanites. He multiplied his nanite count by over three-fold within that half a minute and charged them up to full voltage so that his electric charge would be amplified.

Rex strained and spasm, teeth chattering from the fight, contorted both from outside and within.

He fought to restrain control over the vestiges of his conscious mind, forcing himself to think about the people he cared, holding onto his awareness of himself whilst his insides ballooned with madness that threatened to blow up out of him.

With that much number of active nanites within him, he could easily slip out of his mind and mutate uncontrollably, turning into a rouge EVO as well.

But hell would freeze over before he let that happen to himself.

Holding on till he could no longer withhold the crackling hurricane within, he released them.

Possibly thousands of voltage exploded out from him. It was powerful enough to disintegrate the sludge encasing him, set aflame the surrounding surface as well as blow up the lorry, which exploded in a bonfire that sent the EVO bellowing in pain.

Rex dropped onto the floor, exhausted, feeling drained of energy.

He panted weakly, head pounding in a dizzy spin as he watched the poor creature writhe and rumble monstrous sounds as the fire climbed and raced to its every surface like its own personal hell.

 _Noah,_ Rex remembered and called him out weakly. He'd be damned if Noah had been caught in the blast, and hoped that he'd the smarts to escape before he blew up.

He sighed in relief when Noah poked his head into view and ran in through the damaged hatch.

"Thank god, Rex, you're alive!"

Noah dropped into a kneel and squeezed him in a tight hug. Rex could swear his bones screamed, still fragile from the torrent that blasted out from within.

But Rex didn't complain –he was glad to feel Noah's warmth, relieved to feel his friend was still alive and kicking.

He hadn't expected such a simple bust to go out of hand. On hindsight, he really should have just informed Six and worked with Providence on this case, instead of embroiling Noah in danger,

But Noah had been enthusiastic, and was just as adamant as he was to keep their promise to Gabe and Michael to keep things secret so that their father wouldn't be implicated.

On thinking that, Rex couldn't help but laugh weakly.

God, they were such idiots –both him and Noah –but Rex wouldn't have it any other way.

"Let's get outta here!" Noah urged, casting a worried glance behind at the inferno of hell that was swallowing half the warehouse.

It was surprising most of the outer walls of the warehouse remained standing, as half the roof have already crumbled, the bonfire towering past it and looking it could lick the night sky.

Rex nodded weakly, and let Noah help him up. He flinched from the pain, body hurting and screaming from the blows he had intercepted in the fight, and from the tremendous bout of energy he had put into the electric blast. Rex felt unsteady and drained.

Seeing his exhaustion, Noah supported him with arms that went around his waist and shoulders. Then right there and then, before they could take a step, the familiar sounds announcing Providence's untimely arrival, floated to Rex's ears.

Guttural EVO shouts and barks of orders from Providence officers could be heard coming from outside, signaling that they had caught and secured the three EVOs, which shouldn't be hard since they had their fancy gadgets and equipments.

Noah bolted upright and exchanged wide-eyed looks with Rex.

"Shit," Noah cursed under his breath, "Looks like we're busted."

"You're indeed, young man," Holiday's sharp voice came from the entrance and she stepped into the warehouse, looking very, very cross, "You two better have a good explanation for this."

She stalked towards them slowly, with her long hair uncharacteristically let down and pooling across her chest and back, looking like a menacing panther sizing up her prey.

A dozen Providence officers ran in from behind her to take over the situation with the sludge EVO. A flurry of commands and instructions were thrown all around, calling to put out the fire and secure the EVO.

When she neared them enough to see the battle-worn state that Rex was in, her harsh frown turned into worry.

"My heavens! Rex, I hope you haven't got yourself into another near-death situation!" she burst aloud, shaking visibly, tone completely distressed.

Six suddenly appeared behind her, hand on her shoulder.

"Take it easy, Rebecca, he's a tough one, you know that. Besides, he's still alive."

Six tilted his head outwards, signaling the two of them to leave with them.

"But the EVO…" Rex trailed off weakly.

"By the looks of it, it's already subdued. So the troops can handle it. Captain Calan will oversee things."

Rex nodded weakly and Noah walked in step with him out the warehouse slowly, following behind Six and Holiday.

Perhaps it was the better lighting in the jet, for none of them had taken a proper look at Noah earlier, but suddenly, they gave him an odd stare as Noah helped Rex up the ramp.

Rex cast a sideways glance and noticed that Noah still had his jacket on, but it was filled with so many slashes that it looked as if he had just walked out from a war-torn country.

"Noah, whatever are you wearing?" Holiday asked, sounding more bewildered than concerned.

Noah immediately fumed, making a face.

"That asshole ruined my jacket!" he replied through clenched teeth before plunking himself down on the seat angrily.

Rex suddenly found himself racked with laughter, sure that Holiday was asking about the risqué tank top beneath rather than his slashed jacket.

* * *

Rex and Noah were given umpteen numbers of earfuls that night after they returned to Providence headquarters.

They had to give their report, beginning with how they 'coincidently' found out about the trade gang while they were clubbing. Of course, they skipped the parts about the molestion, about how they cajoled for Intel, about Noah being gay, and how Rex had the most unpleasant time of his life.

Noah ended the account with how he hijacked the lorry from the thugs and damaged the steering wheel in the fight, which was why the vehicle came crashing back into the warehouse and caused the unfortunate accident with the concoction spilling over and upsizing the clay EVO.

Then Noah and Rex became victims of a merciless roulette game, where every person in the main control room took turns to shoot them with a barrage of scolding.

White Knight was especially outraged that they had Intel on an illegal trafficking of nanite enhancement patches and not only kept it to themselves, but also acted on their own to take them out. He went on and on about his fat ass set on fire on Interpol's barbecue grill and how he would never be able to sit or walk properly again, with the yardstick thrust up his butthole by the fat cats in the government.

Well, actually, White Knight never quite put it that way, but that was what Rex had inferred.

Back when EVOs still ran rampant, Providence was allowed abundant freedom in their operations and enjoyed many security bypasses. Governments world over gave them credit and influence. The United States government even appointed Providence as the dominant security and military defense force in the country. And since the government didn't have to fund for anything since Providence was a privately-funded organization, Providence could operate without suffocating constraints. It was an overall win-win situation.

Of course, in his brash, bumbling youth, Rex was ignorant of all these, since these were sensitive, diplomatic issues dealt with by positions of power behind their desks. For Rex, problems were solved in straightforward, 'whams' and 'pows,' and he was about as diplomatic as his fists.

But ever since the World Wide Cure, and Rex continued his work with Providence, he started to notice that Providence have somewhat of a less authoritative presence, especially with the scandal of the Consortium.

Roswell, Reddick, Anthony, Xanubian and Vostok (who later died and was replaced by Black Knight) –they were the original ones who funded the Original Nanite Project, then when things went awry, they created Providence to clean up their shit.

When the secret blew out, the United States government adopted Providence as one of its defense bodies and took ownership in order to avoid a repeat of the incident. As a result, the issue of which situation that would come under Providence's jurisdiction, became as confusing as reading a map upside down and backward.

Thankfully, it wasn't Rex's place to decide these things –he just took orders from Six or Captain Calan. But when things got out of hand, or when Rex busy-bodily jumps into situations he chanced upon that needed his help, he gets reminded by White Knight of the precarious balance between the different security organizations in the country –particularly with Interpol.

Rex had heard White Knight complaining about them and seen the frowns Six wears because of them for more than enough times to know that Interpol liked to scrape Providence butt –or at least, that was how Rex liked to think of it.

Holiday was also upset about them running off on this mission alone, citing a long list of potentially dangerous outcomes that could happen if they failed in their grand scheme. She was adamant that they should have brought the patches to her for research first, so perhaps, she might have then been able to come up with a cure to nullify the effects. It would then save the boys all that trouble of fighting with the EVOs.

Six wasn't much of a yeller, or nagger, but he said a single harsh and scathing line that basically summed up everything that White Knight and Holiday had reproached.

When Captain Calan reported in through video conference that the cleanup operation was almost complete, he ended up joining in their assessment of Rex's and Noah's conduct.

Thankfully, after Noah briefly recounted their report, Captain Calan didn't join in with their reprimands. In fact, he gave them an approving nod and was the only one who congratulated them on the work they've done, particularly when Noah showed his tiny camera device, citing that he had taken photos of all the suspects in one of the trading factions.

But after hearing a few more lambasting from White Knight who disagreed with Captain Calan, Rex just about had enough.

"Okay, so I know, I messed things up again, big time. I should have told you guys first. But hey, everything worked out well in the end, didn't it?" Rex pushed off his chair and stood up, slamming his palms on the circular table.

"Besides, you're missing the bigger picture. We've uncovered an important development – we know those guys manufactured and trafficked the nanite patch. But those goons were likely not the ones who came up the product. And since they were so desperate to come back for the chemical, I doubt they know the formula to produce it."

Noah nodded, agreeing.

"That's true. I bet my two cents that someone is selling them the serum, a scientist who knows how to produce it."

Holiday pinched her chin and nodded thoughtfully.

"I'll check in with my network and see if the science community have anything leads on this. If there's a black sheep amongst one of us, someone might know."

"Yea, see!" Rex shoved two hands in her direction and continued in an exasperated tone, "That's what we want – to move on, find solutions, not hang back on the past mistakes. Plus, at the very least, you people should thank me for putting my ass on the line, like literally. I'm not gonna go into details, but just so you know, I very nearly had to sell my ass."

Rex angrily stuffed his hands into his pants pocket, pissed upon remembering, "Like seriously, to a pervert."

When Six and others gave him a questioning look, Rex folded his arms and glared.

"Don't ask."

Then Rex spun around on his heel and headed for the door, waving a tired hand above his shoulder.

"So cut me some slack. I'm tired, so I'm off to bed first," Rex announced in a lackluster tone and threw Noah a glance, crooking his head to cue his friend to join him.

Thank god, no one tried to stop them, except Holiday, who called out just as they reached the door and quickly came up to them with an guilty look on her face.

"Rex, I'm sorry, it's not that we want to rebuke you for a mission that ended well. It's just, we were really worried."

A smile stretched across Rex's face.

"I know," he patted her shoulder softly. From the way she had turned up at the warehouse, it was like she was rudely woken from her bed and rushed straight there, not having the time to tie her hair up in the immaculate way that she had always done.

Plus, Six had called her by her first name, Rebecca, which he did only when she was really worried and stressed out about something. And to come to think of it, Rex suddenly had this thought that Six seemed to be calling Dr. Holiday by her first name more often recently.

Rex figured that she must still be really stressing out the EVO relapses, and felt inwardly guilty. Granted, it's not his fault that there were evil, nanites geniuses around. But since they have raised the playing field to a point where Rex was past curing, it has forced the science department in Providence into a nerve-racking frenzy. If only Rex could overcome those mutated, evil nanites, somehow, by some miracle power, then Holiday wouldn't need to work herself twice as hard as she usually had.

"Thanks doc, for always being so caring. But I think you should take better care of yourself too. You look more tired recently – I hope it wasn't because of me, or Six will be upset with me too," Rex joked weakly, playing off the fact that he was secretly helpless, "Don't fret about me too much, I can handle myself."

Holiday returned a smile of relief and nodded, letting the two of them continue on.

Bobo raced along their side and followed them out as well. He was wise enough to keep his mouth shut earlier, and now, Rex could see him fidgeting from holding back his questions and comments.

Before Rex could ask Bobo what he wanted to say, Noah leaned forwards from Rex's other side and gave Bobo a hard glare.

"Don't ask," Noah warned, and Bobo burst out laughing, prompting Rex to laugh along as well.

Noah had completely abandoned his jacket and knowing Bobo, Rex was sure that seeing Noah dressed the way he did was sure to tickle his funny bones.

Noah folded his arms and gave them both a cross look, like he knew exactly what they were laughing about.

"I'm so done with the both of you!"

* * *

"So much for keeping it low key, huh," Rex commented aloud as he dried off his wet hair in the locker room.

Since they were both dirty, sweaty and caked with stuff that Rex didn't want to remember, from the earlier fight, they hit the showers first.

Noah grunted as he pulled his shirt over.

"How do you think they found out about us?" Rex continued to ask.

Noah snorted.

"Why do you think? They have twenty-four hours watch on your biometrics, and radars to keep watch on nanite activity and what not. When we had that battle at the warehouse, all the readings probably spiked."

Rex sighed.

"Oh yea, good point. Guess we never really thought it through, huh?"

Noah gave him a light bump to his elbow as they strolled out the locker room, down the corridor to Rex's bedroom.

It was already coming to dawn, and since it was a Sunday, they decided that Noah should just sleepover.

"Look, so maybe we got busted and Providence found out about the trading ring. But at least we've helped Gabe and Michael cut off Coach's supply. That's the important thing. Besides, if we don't tell, Providence will never know who their customers were."

Rex brightened at Noah's consoling words, glad that he always had the right thing to say.

"Plus, now we have those two owing us huge favors for putting our asses out there –maybe we can ask for a lifetime of free tickets to their show!" Noah joked.

Rex groaned and stretched his hands over the back of his head.

"Oh god, Noah, don't remind me."

He shivered slightly and asked Noah never to talk about it. That would be the closest he would come to having his ass violated and he never wanted to repeat the experience again.

Noah laughed in mirth, seemingly finding delight in Rex's misery. Meanwhile, it also reminded Rex on what Noah went through for the gig as well.

"So, what about you?" Rex grew jittery, and tried not to lose his nerves as he continued, "Were you really okay, with um, giving the other douchebag… _access_ to your ass?"

Noah stopped dead in his tracks and gave him a look of horror.

"Of course not!" Noah burst aloud. "Jeez Rex, I'm gay, okay, not a human toilet seat. All I did was just give him another blowjob."

Then Noah immediately bit his lip as if he regretted confessing that. He looked away, cheeks quickly staining red.

Rex swallowed hard, not able to picture it. Well, he had guessed it, but to hear Noah actually confirm it was a different thing. Imagine, Noah's mouth, on a _guy's_ thing.

Rex breathed deeply, suddenly feeling like he was lacking in oxygen. He felt his face heat up, as if he was still a precarious pre-teen having his first discussion about sexual topics.

A sideways glance at Noah showed he looked somewhat tensed, like he was upset with himself. Rex realized that he should say something, but he was tongue tied, and he guessed that his silence was making Noah anxious.

Rex licked his lips warily, nervousness climbing to tenfold.

Because for the first time since meeting Noah, Rex had absolutely no clue what to say to make his friend feel at ease.

He supposed he should make a lame comeback, like a joke or something to show that he didn't care that Noah was giving another guy head. But the fact was, Rex was still kinda bothered by Noah's sexuality, even if he had already said otherwise the night before.

As if fate has come to rescue them from the awkward silence that hung between them, Noah's phone rang.

Noah raised his brows when he looked at the screen before answering.

"Mom, it's late, why are you still up?"

Noah immediately jolted and had to pull the phone slightly away from his ears as her yells came through pretty loud.

Rex couldn't hear every word she had said, but he caught a few, including the part where she scolded Noah for being an ingrate.

Rex cringed, since she hardly ever scolds Noah. She must be pretty ticked off at him. But well, Noah was pretty much asking for it as he hadn't even returned to stay for a weekend since last winter.

Rex couldn't keep a straight face whilst the phone call continued and Noah looked more miserable every second that passed.

Then Noah suddenly paled and protested about something, then kept his mouth shut and pushed the phone to Rex, looking resigned.

"Here, my mom wants to speak to you."

Rex struggled to keep from snickering as he chatted with her. Turns out that Noah's dad was going overseas for a business trip the coming weekend, so Mrs. Nixon was adamant that Noah come back to accompany her. And she tasked Rex with making sure that happened and insisted that he should stay over as well.

Rex nearly choked on his saliva, struggled not to faint, and forced himself to remain calm enough to continue the rest of the conversation until his goodbyes.

"I see, so your dad's away," Rex tried to sound upbeat as he returned Noah the phone, "and your mom wants you home."

"Yea, and you too," Noah said, sounding uncomfortable.

Rex cleared his throat, earning an unfathomable look from Noah, though Rex could guess what was going through his mind.

They've been to sleepovers more times than they could count. They slept in the same room, chilled out on the couch, fell asleep together in front of the TV and even changed in front of one another. But that was all before Rex knew that Noah was gay.

How were things going to be different now?

"Um, you don't have to, if you don't want to," Noah said quietly, turning away, dejected, upset, again showing his fear.

How this Noah could look a one-eighty from the gung-ho, fighting guy from earlier, was proof of how much torture Noah was suffering internally.

Rex knew, he had to support his friend, no matter what.

So he quickly put his hand on Noah's shoulder and turned him around, giving him a grin.

"Are you kiddin' Noah? Outta this boring HQ, away from their nagging and into two days of restaurant food cooked by your mom, and unlimited time on video games without Bobo hogging it from us? –Of course I'm in!"

Noah gave a look of relief and beamed, and Rex became convinced it was the right call.

Of course, nothing was different. They were still buddies. And Rex was going to keep it that way.

* * *

Author's Comments:

Hohohohoho…can you imagine what will happen next? XD


	14. Home stay

****Updated this chapter on 4th March 2017. Sorry for those who read the old version then found it missing - made some edits so it will be better!**

 ****Special thanks to Bramblerose4 for your advice! Much appreciated!**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: Homestay**

(Rex joins Noah as he returns home on a weekend)

* * *

When the door opened, Rex was taken back, not expecting to find a robot with human proportions greeting them.

"Welcome home, Master Noah, lunch is ready."

"Master Noah?" Rex raised his brow, then realized it was one of those artificial, domestic helpers that were rolled out in the last two years.

"What the hell? What in the world is this thing here?" Noah gave a bewildered look.

"Mr. Salazar, welcome, please come in as well."

Rex offered a smile by habit, though he wasn't sure if the robot registered his friendliness.

"Just Rex, will do."

It tilted its oblong head slightly, green orbs blinking twice.

"Understood, Rex."

Then it moved to the side to let them in.

Rex was quite amused. He'd never been up close with these domestic types of robots. He'd only seen them on TV or in supermarkets when he was buying stuff.

Noah, on the other hand, was less than pleased by the discovery and rushed in calling for his mom. Rex followed after, but kept casting glances back, studying the robot.

It had a segmented, jointed anatomy that resembled the human form. The parts were metal, of course, and were sleek and rounded, like barrels and rods that were well shaped so it had a certain, aesthetic appeal. A silver gauze where the mouth was, was shaped in a permanent crescent, supposedly so it looked friendly, and Rex surmised the voice box must be fitted behind the gauze like a loud speaker.

As he stared at the robot, Rex could hear Noah's unhappy questions coming from the kitchen.

"Well, honey, I don't see what's the problem. I've had him for half a year and he's been obedient, efficient and a great help around the house."

Mrs. Nixon answered as she walked out the kitchen, carrying a dish with both hands.

"But Mom –"

"Hi Mrs. Nixon," Rex chirped, interrupting Noah and rushed over.

"Wah! I smell cheese and beef and more cheese!" Rex exclaimed, leaning over the delectable looking lasagna and made a show of taking an exaggerated whiff.

Mrs. Nixon laughed and Rex was reminded how similar she and Noah looked. Their brows sloped down on the outer ends and their cheeks bobbed and became incredibly rounded when they laughed, looking somewhat endearing.

Even whilst wearing a straight face, Mrs. Nixon was a gorgeous woman –the only one whom Rex considered was on par with Holiday... besides Circe, of course. And lucky Noah got most of his good looks from her, but in a manly version.

"Careful Rex, scoot over before you drool all over it," she brought the dish out of his way, "And well, yes, I thought since it's been so long, I should whip up one of you boy's favorites."

"Thanks Mrs. Nixon, you're the best!" Rex gushed.

She nodded towards the dining room, indicating for Rex to go on and take a seat.

"Let me help you with that," Rex offered then the robot came up to her other side.

"Please allow me, Grace."

"Why, thank you, Patrick," she smiled and handed the dish to the robot, "After that, could you help to finish setting the table?"

"Certainly."

"Patrick?" Rex and Noah said in unison and looked at each other.

Rex was surprised and thought it was amusing, but Noah looked outraged.

"You must be kidding! You gave it a name?" Noah waved after the robot who disappeared into the dining room.

Mrs. Noah gave him a stern look and pulled out her mittens and apron, hanging them by a hook near the kitchen door.

"Of course, it's only the civil thing to do."

"But it's just a robot, who cares? And why do you need one anyway? Isn't it freakin' expensive?" Noah deadpanned.

"Well, my work has got more hectic recently and since _someone_ is hardly home to help, your father used his bonus and some of his savings to get one for me a few months back. I've relied on Patrick since then and he's been wonderful."

Noah flinched visibly like she'd hit the bullseye.

"B-but-"

Rex quickly stepped in for damage control."

"C'mon, Noah, quit yer yapping! Time out, I'm famished!" Rex exclaimed, hooking an arm over Noah's neck and dragging him into the dining room.

Rex was floored by the amazing spread on the table. He positively drooled a bit and wiped it with his jacket sleeve. The aroma that wafted up to his nose made him giddy with happiness.

Rex hurriedly seated himself, dragging Noah to the seat beside him.

"I thank ye lord for this scrumptious meal. I am a happy man!"

Rex put his palms together in a prayer of thanks, tickling Mrs. Nixon who followed after.

"Well, I'm glad to see you're still so enthusiastic," she said, smiling and sat opposite them.

Rex was impatient to dig in, but they waited for Patrick to finish setting the table. After that, the robot sat down next to Mrs. Nixon, even though he doesn't need to eat.

Rex caught Noah's glare and elbowed him before he could say something rude. Obviously, Mrs. Nixon must have made it a common practice for Patrick to join at the table, out of her 'civil manners'.

"Rex, would you do us the honors?"

It took Rex a few seconds to realize what she meant.

"Of course," Rex said and clasped his hands together.

Rex wasn't Christian, but he didn't mind leading a prayer. As far as religions go, as long as they didn't preach violence and hatred, they were okay in Rex's books.

"What?" came Noah's agitated voice and Rex cast a sideways glance to see his flabbergasted look, "Why are we praying with the robot?"

Mrs. Nixon raised a critical brow and gave a sharp smile.

"Why not? Rex is EVO and you're gay, but you two are also praying at the table."

Noah gave a look of utter defeat and Rex chose that moment of all times to burst into laughter. Rex knew Noah would be annoyed, but he couldn't help himself, finding it utterly hilarious.

Mrs. Nixon was a sweet woman who made homely meals and baked scrumptious pastries and was always caring and understanding. At the same time, she could also be excruciatingly direct when she wanted to, in a cynically, humorous manner. So he could see where Noah got his wit and sense of humor from.

Noah gave him an annoyed stare long enough for Rex to feel guilty at laughing over his misery.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry, Noah. But you gotta admit, your mom's right."

"I'm glad you see that," she beamed at him and Noah rolled his eyes at their cooperation.

At least Noah shut up and joined hands across the table with them, letting Rex lead them through the prayer, which Rex did in a rush since Noah glowered at the robotic metal-jointed fingers that laid over Mrs. Nixon's hand, like he wanted to wretch them off. Rex pondered why Noah seemed so upset and surmised it must be because Noah wasn't told about this. Noah wasn't a Mommy's boy, but he was close to her.

"Wah! Awesome!" Rex exclaimed as he dug into the meal.

Mrs. Nixon had culinary skills to rival any of the top foodie havens in New York.

"I've missed this!"

Mrs. Nixon stretched her lips sideways for a lopsided smile and lifted a brow.

"Then you should have visited more often too," she said pointedly and Rex returned a sheepish smile.

They fell into animated chatter, with Rex mainly sending her into fits of laughter with his exaggerated tales, and Noah refuting him with facts back and forth in playful banter. Rex was relieved that Noah lightened up quickly. And it felt good to be having a nice chat and meal with the Nixon family again –well, minus Noah's dad for this round.

Rex had learnt from Noah that initially, his parents did have some reservations towards them hanging out, worrying that it was dangerous. Even so, they had always been welcoming and warm towards Rex, despite him being EVO.

Funny enough, after they've resigned to the fact that Noah was stuck to Rex like glue, Rex started getting his share of earful to not be so reckless and to take better care of himself, and Noah.

Rex secretly appreciated it, just like how Holiday would nag at him and Six occasionally would, and even Bobo's loveable sarcastic comments.

Rex truly felt blessed.

After lunch, Rex and Noah helped to clear the table and wash the dishes alongside Patrick. Noah started looking annoyed again and glared at the robot.

"Look Robo, Rex and I got this, so why don't you run along and find yourself something else to do?"

"Certainly, Master Noah."

Noah's mom came up from behind at that point and gave a light smack to Noah's head.

"I don't know why you're being so immature about this, but can you try to talk to him in a more polite tone?"

"Who cares? He's just a bunch of wires –"

She silenced Noah with her icy glare then sighed.

"If you're going to complain about Patrick so much, then just leave this stuff for him to do. You still have things to unpack, don't you?"

"No, it's fine, I want to do this."

Mrs. Nixon looked heavenward then turned to the robot.

"Oh and Patrick, just calling him 'Noah' will do."

Then she left the kitchen, leaving the three of them to work in silence.

Rex stood in between the both of them and could feel Noah glowering at the robot whilst scrubbing at the dirty dishes furiously. Rex thought dryly that if Noah used any more strength, the plate might actually crack.

He was dying to ask Noah what he had against the robot, but he felt it was rude to talk about it in front of the robot itself. Sure, it was emotionless and all, but since Mrs. Nixon treated it with such respect and friendliness, Rex felt inclined to do the same.

As Rex watched Noah from the corner of his eyes, he accidently knocked over the tower of plates that the robot had placed next to him.

"Crap –" Rex exclaimed in horror, then saw the column safely caught by the robot's arms, balanced against its body.

"Wow, he's fast," Rex breathed, rather impressed.

Noah didn't feel the same way.

"You mean, 'It.'"

Rex lifted a questioning brow.

"Why do you seem to hate 'It' so much?"

Noah made a harrumph and looked indignant.

"I don't, it's just, I don't trust it. It's evil."

"Right," Rex dragged his reply in disbelief, baffled over Noah's biasedness.

Rex was sure that there was something that had Noah twisted like a sourpuss, as Noah normally wouldn't be so rude and unwelcoming. But Noah didn't look like he wanted to talk about it, so Rex left it as that.

Right as they were done with dishwashing, Mrs. Nixon returned, dressed in a nice frock and a cardigan.

"Patrick, you're done? Good, come, it's about time for us to leave."

"Woa, a date with Patrick, Mrs. Nixon?" Rex joked, brows waggling, earning an annoyed stare from Noah.

Mrs. Noah laughed and dismissed it.

"No, no, Rex. He's just accompanying me to the book club. It's on every Saturday around this time."

Noah made an agitated grunt at the back of his throat.

"Right, I remember now. Then I'm coming too."

Mrs. Nixon gave him an amused look.

"No, you can't. Did you forget, it's an all ladies club."

"But the robot's not a lady!"

Rex bit his tongue to keep from laughing at Noah's exaggerated, look of despair.

"No, but he's an excellent listener, unlike you. I'm not going to be embarrassed by you nodding off to sleep again," Mrs. Nixon chided lightly and lightly smacked his arm.

"But you and Rex can help me sometime around four. I'm stopping by the supermarket to get some food. I'm thinking hotpot for dinner, how does that sound?"

"Mmmm, delicious," Rex made an exaggerated show of licking his lips.

"Good, then Patrick and I are off."

"I honestly don't see how a dumb robot can be good company," Noah continued lamenting, obviously courting for death.

Mrs. Nixon gave him a very crossed look.

"And I don't see how being a little more civil will kill you. I've told you, he's obedient and he's good with chores. Honestly, you should be grateful, who do you think kept your room clean while you were gone?"

Noah's eyes widened at that.

"You mean it's been in my room?"

"Of course! I'd been too busy to dust your room but since he's here, I've got him to help. Otherwise your stuff will be caked in layers of dust."

Without another word, Noah bolted out from the kitchen, with Mrs. Nixon smiling mischievously and shaking her head.

Rex caught her gaze and nearly keeled over, catching her meaning. She probably dealt that move to keep Noah off her back.

Outsiders wouldn't know this, not even Noah's friends who might drop by his room at the dorm –Noah was secretly OCD when it came to his room in his house.

As expected, Rex climbed the steps and went up to Noah's room to find the blonde inspecting the room like a sergeant doing bunk checks.

Noah was an exceptional neat freak when it came to this room. His single bed was set against one corner, with a desk and cupboard lining the opposite the wall. Even though Rex hadn't been here in ages, it looked exactly the way it was the last time he remembered, since Noah always kept his things organized in the same place.

Noah went over to his wardrobe set against the other wall, and flipped through the hung clothing.

"See, I knew it! It messed up my clothes!" Noah exclaimed after a few seconds.

Rex dropped his small bag pack onto the veneer floor and came up behind Noah for a look.

"How so? They're already hung according to color," Rex commented, bewildered.

"Yea, but you see, I always hang this blue shirt behind this other one and this red tee goes behind this other red tee."

Rex let out a guffaw and gave an amused stare.

"You know, you really should get yourself checked for your OCD problem."

Noah folded his arms.

"I do not have OCD."

Ten minutes later of inspecting other parts of his room, Noah was irate again, removing a couple of discs from the CD rack atop his desk.

"I can't believe this!" Noah fumed, "That thing had the gall to rummage through my stuff and mess it up!"

"What now?" Rex asked, and wheeled over on Noah's chair, "Don't tell me your CDs are color coordinated as well."

"No, but it took out those that I had stashed in my drawer and slotted them here!"

Rex rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, does it even matter? And isn't it more organized to keep all your CDs together?"

Then as Rex leaned over, he saw a busty blonde wearing only a doctor's lab coat gracing one of the CD covers, with a man cupping her breast from behind.

It looked like any other regular porn CD cover, but Rex stared at familiar sight, remembering that particular image because it was the first porn he had ever watched, and it was with _Noah_.

The memory returned in a hazy flash –of them, in their hot-blooded, precarious days of their mid-teenage years. Noah was in high school then and got it from a classmate and when he shared it with Rex, they somehow ended up jerking off together while watching the video in an absurd, camaraderie, 'bro bonding' way.

Other guys would probably be mortified to jack off with their buddy, but Rex reasoned that the experience wasn't overly awkward as they were able to still face each other normally after that.

Nonetheless, they had an unspoken agreement to never, repeat the incident, and Rex had nearly forgotten all about it.

 _Until today._

Amused with reuniting with the first porn video that introduced him to the world of cosplay sex, jiggling boobs and the amazing feeling of cumming by his own hand while watching it, Rex pointed at the disc.

"Wow, holy shit, Noah, I didn't realize that you still had this vid. No wonder you kept it at the drawer –didn't want your mom finding out huh?"

Noah promptly froze, breath hitching loudly.

Rex grimaced inwardly, wondering if he had said something wrong.

He could see Noah flush crimson, all the way to his ears and neck, hunching over his desk and keeping an awkward silence.

Rex was momentarily baffled. It had been nearly four years since then, so it should have been an amusing experience to reminiscence. Yet here Noah was, getting shit embarrassed on remembering.

Rex swallowed hard, starting to feel uncomfortable as well.

Then he suddenly realized something, which he could not stop himself but ask.

"Hey, Noah, back then, when we were watching this, did you get hard because you were watching the guy? Because you still dated Claire after that."

Noah promptly whipped around at that point, piercing him with an incredulous gaze.

"What the –what kind of question is that?"

"Nothing," Rex shrugged, "Just curious to know how and when exactly did you realize you were gay."

Noah took a deep breath and pointedly pushed past him with a crossed look.

"I'm going to take bath!"

* * *

Rex made funny noises with his mouth and lazily spun around in Noah's chair while he waited for Noah to be done, which would be a long while since Noah liked taking his time in the shower.

Rex still puzzled over why Noah refused to answer his question. Sure, it was embarrassing, but since Rex already found out that Noah was gay, he saw no other reason for Noah to keep any other secrets from him.

His deliberation were punctured by several beeps from Noah's phone on the bedside table, signaling new messages received –a whole bunch of them.

Rex suddenly perked up, curious. Noah had always been popular so it was common for his phone to beep frequently whenever they hung out. But Noah never seemed to bother to check them, instead, focused his full attention on Rex, which was nice.

For some reason, Annie's words from the other day returned to him.

 _"Because I would have contaminated my mind and ruined my appetite."_

Rex couldn't help but wonder what had made her say that.

Since Noah was still in the shower, Rex took the opportunity and stretched himself on the bed on his belly and grabbed Noah's phone to investigate.

The first message showed the image of someone's cock accompanied by a filthy message saying, 'Come to Daddy. I've got 6 inches uncut for you."

Rex promptly dropped the phone on the bed in shock. He stared in disbelief at the vile gadget that contained such a terrible invitation. Deciding to save his friend from such an obscene image, Rex gingerly picked up the phone and deleted it, then checked the next message.

'This wants your mouth.' There was another image of a guy exposing his cock, grabbing onto the head. Rex gasped aloud in outrage and deleted it as well.

'Lettme into your tight ass, Noah, I've been dreaming of you.' And another mother-fucking cock image accompanied it. Rex glared at the ugly thing and deleted it.

'I want you in my –' Rex erased the obscene message before he was done reading it.

Rex scrolled through the messages quickly, livid to see tons of pictures of naked cocks and asses and variant displays of egoistic declarations from perverts. He proceeded to delete them all, deciding that tainting his eyes and suffering alone for the sake of his friend was enough.

So this was why Annie refused to pick up Noah's phone, least she sees any of these vile images.

 _What the bloody hell?!_

Rex could hardly believe it. These bastards talked as if Noah was some kind of gay hooker –but he knew Noah was obviously not, since Noah had assured him that he didn't fuck with just anyone. But then again, Rex realized that he had never actually asked about Noah's sex life, so didn't know how sexually active Noah was, or how many guys he had slept with.

Rex felt his throat run dry.

He wasn't sure if he liked the idea of Noah fucking around with guys –not that he had a problem with Noah being gay. But it felt strange, somehow, like he was still in disbelief and couldn't completely wrap his head around how Noah was actually so popular among gays.

How come he had never noticed?

Right, because Noah acted so completely normal around him, and even talked about girls, Rex remembered in chagrin. So that meant that Noah had always been acting, because like he'd said before, he was afraid to complicate things between them –afraid to lose Rex as a friend.

He recalled Annie commenting about Noah's pheromones and realized in chagrin and the two of them most definitely have been hitting gay clubs more than more a couple of times. And if Noah had been wearing that risqué outfit like he had, to those places, no doubt, he must have gotten the same amount of attention. At Staizer, there were plenty who had begged for his number, but Noah turned them down, probably because Rex was present and he didn't want Rex getting suspicious. So then, did Noah give his number to these creeps from other gay clubs?

Rex never had such conflicting thoughts about his best friend before.

All the randy scenes at the club came back to the forefront of his mind, still fresh since it had only been a week since it happened. He nearly choked on remembering the first guy that had to gall to ask something so vile as to whether Noah had space in between his ass for him. It was jarringly evident the creep was talking about wanting to fuck Noah.

He'll be damned.

How a guy's cock could actually get up there between an ass was beyond him. Up until now, Rex never had to challenge himself with the concept about how something could enter the anus, when it was meant for stuff to come out. And he doubted this facet of biology was something that Holiday could shed light into. And in the first place, why would anyone want to fuck up another guy's ass?

Rex inadvertently recalled the white mounds of Noah's perky ass that he'd seen in Providence shower a few weeks back. He wondered if that was attractive to other gays. How would they do it, if they'd Noah's tush in their hands? Spread his cheeks and ram their –

Rex caught himself mid imagination, and was mortified that he was picturing such rabid scenes in his head.

 _Shit!_ Rex cursed inwardly and ran a hand through his short, cropped hair, frustrated.

This was surely, mind fuck of a hundredth degree.

But he couldn't keep his thoughts from straying further down the rabbit hole. He remembered Noah's lascivious response at the club while his nipples were tweaked, and was sure that Noah must have enjoyed it to some degree.

 _So he likes it?_

Rex was filled with crazy questions and rampant imaginations now. He pictured Noah getting down with a faceless man, trying to imagine how Noah would react, how he looked like, how pleasurable it was to have sex with another man.

Then suddenly, Rex could put an expression on Noah's face –the one that he'd seen before, in their 'camaraderie', _jack off_ session.

The foggy memories became sharp in Rex's mind.

The heavy panting, the rhythmic strokes of their hands within their pants and the heat and sweat that swathed them in that hot, summer afternoon, returned like a ghost, sending goose bumps to rise along Rex's skin.

Noah's parents had been out, leaving the living room TV free for them to enjoy the steamy porn on high definition, LCD screen whilst they wanked themselves to kingdom come on the couch.

He couldn't remember who started it first, only that they had been so completely turned on by the stimulating vid, that they became lost to the aching demands of their excited cocks, first kneading their boners over their jeans then diving their hands inside to properly give their staff a good stroke.

Despite the loud grunts, moans and erotic sloppy sounds coming from the video, Rex could very clearly hear Noah's every soft hitch, tiny grunts and mews that he tried to repress. It was probably odd that Noah tried his best to keep silent at that point, but Rex understood it, because he was the same –their cries of pleasure and embarrassing moans burned Rex's ears –such, was their innocence at that time.

Rex recalled how hot and excited he felt as he cast glances towards the erotic sex playing out in explicit detail on the TV screen. And next to him, Noah was a face of lewd ecstasy. They sat close together, and ended up facing sideways slightly towards each other, legs tangled up over the seat. Rex remembered Noah's flushed skin, his eyelids closed over in pleasure, his mouth gasping breathlessly and the tremble in his shoulders as he moved his hand furiously within his pants.

Rex was sure he came first, shouting curses and throbbing violently, before Noah reached his climax, arching sharply off the couch. But Rex was so shaken up by his first foray into watching porn and jacking off with someone else that he became hard again and eagerly unzipped his front fly to free his cock so that he could stroke it properly.

Noah never took his cock out –maybe he was shy, or something –but he quickly got excited again as well, staring at Rex's cock with such a lascivious look in his eye that Rex felt smug and glorified.

Over and over, they both jerked off like wild animals in heat, even after the video stopped playing, until they became spent and exhausted. Then there was silence – long, quiet breathings of staring up at the ceiling, not daring to meet each other's eyes, as they reflected on the powerful, physical drama that had taken over them.

Noah made the move to clean himself up first, getting up from the couch and disappearing for a few minutes. Rex was still so mind blown and had his thoughts in scatters, so he daren't make a move. Sagged against the backrest of the couch, he felt gripped by an increasingly powerful sense of anxiety and fear that they may have done something forbidden. Not that masturbation was wrong, but somehow, even dense and a little slow as Rex was in terms of sensitivity, he knew that society taught that these things should be done between a boy and a girl.

 _Not between a boy and a boy._

But when Noah returned minutes later with a bunch of tissues and fresh pants dumped over him, with a mock 'mom' nag to clean himself up, Rex felt waves of terror receding from his body. He lightened considerably, and bolted from the couch into the kitchen, hurriedly cleaning himself and changing his pants, wanting to escape from the evidence of their debauchery as fast as he could.

That, was how their jerk-off session went. But young, inexperienced, and awkward about confronting the situation, both kept mum about what they did, acting as if nothing ever happened. Of course it had bothered Rex for a long time about their errant play, confused on why and how they could delve into something so depraved and private, together.

But as he grew even older, and hanging around in a building full of lonely Providence officers cooped in a solemn life, where the only hot bodies next to you had equally deprived cocks as yours, Rex learnt things from those older guys that shed a little light on the wicked act he shared with his best bud.

'Bro-bonding' – as they called it. Just a little comradely exercise to let off some steam. Plainly physical, and nothing more to it – just enough to help meet a man's needs. It wasn't something that they really talked about though, as in, not openly like the way they talked about women and other stuff.

But being an inquisitive guy, with _special abilities_ , cooped up within Providence walls 24/7 could get one learning the little habits of the folks there, even the secrets meant for under the covers. Really, it wasn't that hard for Rex to find out – if he concentrated, he could hear whispers right from across the room, and even sounds within the officers' bunk from the outside corridor, even though the walls were supposedly sound proof.

The teenage Rex began to learn the complexity of the adult world and could finally pin an answer to the masturbation session he had with Noah in their younger days. Not as if he hadn't already known how absurd grownups were, since he lived there since he was a kid. But as a kid he was more naïve, and was naturally less aware of the stuff that adults kept behind closed doors, until teenage hormones rampaged and taught him to attune himself to that.

Since then, Rex never thought about their session as anything more than simple 'bro-bonding.' He never thought it was necessary to bring up an explanation to Noah either – it had become unspoken fact, swept under covers under reasoning of teenage hormones. Noah never brought it up either, and not even once hinted anything in reference to that incident, so Rex saw no reason to do otherwise.

In fact, he had nearly forgotten all about it and it hadn't even occurred to him how erotic Noah actually looked, and how he had been split in his attention between facing the porn actress's bouncing tits and Noah's lusty expressions. Thinking back on it, Rex realized that Noah had actually made him feel really hot, adding to his stimulation.

Then Rex bolted up from Noah's bed, kneeling upright, saliva rising up his jaw, heart galloping a thousand miles per second.

 _Damn!_ Rex cursed inwardly, panting heavily, as he realized that right now, he was completely hard.

* * *

"Bacon strips, check, tofu, check, black pepper and ginger, check check… a bottle of oyster sauce –also got that…"

Rex came up behind Noah who was verbally reading off the shopping list that Mrs. Nixon had texted him earlier.

"And over eight hundred grams worth of potatoes," Rex added happily and dumped the items onto the trolley that Noah leaned against.

Noah looked at the four big packets of chips and then looked back up at Rex and scowled.

"You went off on your own for thirty minutes and all you got were snacks? And those weren't even in the shopping list!"

"Hey, I did get the potatoes," Rex protested, flinging his palms flat out towards the chips in good show.

Noah shook his head and gave a defeated sigh, but couldn't stop a smile from tugging at the corner of his lips, telling Rex that Noah wasn't really annoyed.

"You know, you could at least help me get some other stuff before my mom gets here."

Rex gave a knowing smile.

"Because you want to pick up all the items before Patrick has a chance to?"

Noah scowled again.

"It doesn't have a name –it's a robot, not a person."

"Well," Rex folded his arms, amused by Noah's stubborn hostility, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you're jealous."

Noah looked at him like he'd grown horns.

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm not jealous of that _thing_."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"You are, too."

"No, I already said that I'm not."

"C'mon, Noah, I know a green-eyed monster when I see one."

Noah gave up the back and fro banter, sighing in a frustrated manner, combing his layered hair back.

"Just go get the rest of the stuff on your half of the list."

Rex ballooned his mouth, raising sheepish brows at Noah.

Noah narrowed his brows.

"What now?"

"I don't know what the rest of the items are," Rex admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

"What?" Noah shot an incredulous look, "Don't you ever buy groceries?-" Then Noah looked heavenward and set his lips in a tight line. "-Right, I forgot, you don't. You just eat cafeteria meals in Providence. Never mind then, I'll get them."

Noah shook his head.

"Well, how the hell am I supposed to know what's _Chanterelle_?" Rex said, indignant, going behind Noah to push the trolley.

As he did so, Noah half turned to get the handle as well, so their arms brushed. Rex tensed but forced himself not to flinch or Noah would get suspicious.

Earlier on, the few hours between Rex's hard on over explicit memories and him having to _take care_ of it down in the kitchen toilet, to them shopping for Mrs. Nixon, was like hell.

Rex had been inwardly, all shaky like a leaf and couldn't concentrate all through their video game after Noah was out of the bath. It was no surprise that he was K.O-ed over and over till Noah elbowed him in his gut to check if he was feeling well. Rex held himself together and gave a lame comeback that he was merely giving Noah the chance to gloat before beating him in a landslide –which, unfortunately for Rex, never came.

He was having trouble ignoring his debauched manners, especially since the sensation of his hot, slick and throbbing dick still lingered in his hands. His palms got completely sweaty due to his uneasiness so it was hard to fiddle with the controls properly.

Now, he has calmed down more, but he subtly tried to avoid getting too close to Noah.

"They're a type of mushroom," Noah explained blandly, as he let Rex maneuver the trolley, scrolling through the rest of the list on his iPhone. Then when Noah looked up, he stopped and scanned across the huge retail.

"The dry food section is that way," Noah pointed and gave an amused smirk, "You know, for a guy who travels around the world, you sure have bad directions in a supermarket."

"Yea well, the supermarket directory doesn't show up on the GPS."

Noah snorted, head shaking.

As they continued their marketing, Rex started to notice that Noah seemed a little jumpy every time that they passed by a robot. Rex got more puzzled, wondering if it was just coincidence, since there were only a few of them. Rex didn't think there were anything wrong with them.

In fact, he thought it was rather nice that for a change, these high-tech robots were benign and harmless, instead of maliciously programmed to cause destruction. He'd a fair share of dealing with dangerous faces of high-tech creations of all sorts, so he was glad that at least there were still a group of people –or rather company –who used their genius for the benefit of society.

As Rex was thinking to himself, Noah suddenly flinched without warning and stepped back heavily, trotting over Rex's foot.

Rex yelped loudly, more so in annoyance than actual pain.

"Whoa! Watch it Noah! What scared ya? Don't tell me a-" Rex immediately shut his mouth mid-sentence at Noah's contorted face.

On reflex, Rex tensed up, wary of their surroundings. He followed Noah's aghast stare to a guy who stood roughly ten feet away, who stared back at him and Noah with his mouth opened in surprise.

"Noah? What a coincidence!" the guy exclaimed after a few seconds and strode over, "Man, I can't believe we'll bump into each other here!"

He was tall, like Rex and equally tanned, with his sides shaved and had a short, stylish spikey crop down the center.

Noah positively paled, looking like he'd seen a ghost. He retreated two steps before the guy could slap a friendly greeting on his arm, as if he was avoiding the plague.

"Ray," Noah addressed in an icy tone.

A robot followed behind the other guy –probably owned by him – and Noah retreated some more like the Ghost of Christmas Past was upon him.

"Woa, it's been a long time –nearly one year, isn't it? I see you're still looking good," the guy said cheerfully, appearing not to notice Noah's apparent discomfort. He snaked his gaze up and down Noah in the same predatory way like the other gays in the club, causing Rex to feel affronted. But Rex kept his temper in check, not wanting to cause a scene.

"What brings you here?"

"Not your business," Noah snapped, narrowing his blue orbs, gaze cold and biting like razor-sharp icicles.

Ray shrugged and gave a small, unaffected laugh.

"Okay, it's cool even if you don't tell. I'm just surprised to see you here. I'm actually down visiting some relatives and I gotta say, I really wasn't expecting to bump into you."

"Yea, me neither," Noah replied, but in a scathing tone that suggested he was far less pleased than Ray.

"What a small world –I think it's pretty cool, don't you think?"

"No, it's not. It's a curse."

 _Ouch,_ Rex couldn't help but flinch at Noah's obvious contempt. He shivered inwardly like a gust of cold wind from Mount Everest had blasted through the aisle. Though Noah doesn't sugar talk, he knew how to be considerate enough to mince his words and was apt at being eloquently sarcastic on a humorous level where necessary.

But man, does he really have it all out for this guy –there was not a hint of friendliness at all.

Ray however, couldn't take a hint.

"C'mon, Noah, it's fate. Why don't we hang out again? Get together?"

Noah looked like he wanted to gag, so Rex was positive that Noah absolutely hated this guy. Though he didn't know what had went on between them before, Rex decided to 'save' the poor sob from his social delusion.

"Listen, uh, Ray? Was it?" Rex began and stood in between them, "Noah's really busy, so as much as it sounds like fun, I think he's skipping the –"

"Oh Rex, finally, I found you, I've been calling Noah non-stop but that boy is not picking up."

Rex turned around to find Mrs. Nixon coming down the perpendicular aisle, faced down rummaging into her bag, with Patrick following behind her.

"Where is my list –damn it – ah here!" she exclaimed and fished out a small note book just as she reached them and tapped Ray's arms on the back of the book, looking at him.

"Here's some extra stuff that I remembered and just wrote down –think you can help me get it?"

"Uh, Mrs. Nixon," Rex started, amused that she had mistaken Ray for him, "I'm right here!"

Rex gave her a little wave.

Mrs. Nixon snapped her head to the side and stared at him, then at Ray, then widened her eyes.

"Oh! Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry there, I was mistaken. Please excuse me," Mrs. Nixon apologized and passed Rex the notebook, then frowned when she noticed Noah standing behind.

"Noah! Why didn't you pick up your phone?" she nagged at him, to which Noah gave a bewildered look.

"But I didn't even get any call," Noah protested, then fished his phone out his pocket and checked it, then frowned.

Rex swallowed hard, feeling his palms get sweatier as Noah gave him a suspicious glare.

"Rex… did you do something to my phone? Some of the settings are not right."

Rex gave a nervous laugh.

"Uh, I may have accidently changed them while I was playing with it."

If Noah was pale before, he looked like death itself now.

"You looked at my phone?" his tone was incredulous, "without my _permission_?"

"What's the big deal? We're best buds anyway, not like there's anything to hide," Rex refuted, folding his arms across his chest.

"Yea, but it's _privacy_ , Rex. It's common sense –"

Ray suddenly chortled loudly, interrupting Noah and catching their attention.

"It's funny, the way you bicker –almost like an old, married couple. Makes me almost _jealous_."

Mrs. Nixon cleared her throat loudly, this time commanding their attention.

"Is _someone_ here trying to court my son?"

"Mom!" Noah burst aloud, looking mortified, while Rex choked on his saliva and nearly coughed his heart out.

Ray laughed lightly and raised his hands in defense.

"I hope you don't feel offended, Mrs. Nixon. I'm Ray, just an old acquaintance. We happened to bump into one another, so I was asking if Noah wanted to catch up some time."

"No, no, not gonna happen. I don't have time. I'm dining at home tonight and Rex and I have planned a full day tomorrow, then I'm outta here."

Mrs. Nixon frowned at Noah's curt reply, and looked like she wanted to give Noah an earful, but Ray spoke first.

"Oh right, I nearly forgot –you and Rex are best buds," Ray grinned and gave Rex a look that made him feel uncomfortable, "I wouldn't mind joining in together with you two, if you have room for the third wheel. I think Rex would be eager to hear how we'd spent our last few meetings, right Noah?"

Rex could swear Noah looked like a hailstorm, biting chill blasting off in waves from him with lightning shooting from his eyes.

"Fine, I'll squeeze in time for you," Noah said in a steely tone.

"Good, then let's exchange numbers, so I can give you a call."

Rex stared between the two of them, and somehow, had a bad feeling running through him.

After another five star meal, Rex and Noah lazed around the living room, watching a B-rate horror flick that they've rented on the way back from the supermarket. However, Rex's attention was on Noah rather than the movie.

Noah looked tensed the whole time and Rex was sure it had something to do with Ray. Rex tried to ask what was going on between them, but Noah only glared icy shards like a frost sprite, shutting Rex up.

Thinking back, Rex recalled that Ray was giving Noah a creepy sort of look. Maybe he used to stalk Noah, obsessed with him like those other guys at the club. Or worse, maybe Noah had a one-night stand with Ray, where Ray did something to piss him off bad. Of course, Rex was making a wild guess. And it was crazy.

But Rex had no way of getting confirmation unless Noah spills, and he felt irritated not knowing. It seemed like there was this whole world about Noah that he hadn't known until now.

After Claire, who else did Noah date? Who did he sleep with? Rex never hears Noah talk about his love life, or his sexual escapades. He has seen Noah flirt with girls on campus from time to time, but he assumed it was just Noah being playful and casual, since he never got serious with any of them.

So it was all an act? To mask his sexuality? Noah wasn't the superficial type, so Rex guessed that it must be that the girls just couldn't keep themselves off Noah, so Noah was forced to play along.

Then what about other guys –or rather, gays? Noah goes to gay clubs with Anne and probably hooks up with them. But how many of them have he slept with?

Midway through the movie, Noah's phone beeped, cutting in on Rex's warped deliberations, and his face scrunched up when he took a look at his message.

"Who's that? Ray?"

Noah's fucked up face gave Rex the confirmation. He had enough.

"C'mon, give me there!" Rex demanded and reached across for Noah's phone, wanting to know what that creep texted.

Noah's arm shot lightning fast out of reach before Rex grabbed it.

"Leave it, Rex!"

Rex was not giving up. He lunged over full force, pushing Noah down on his side. But Noah was a fast one, sliding his phone on the floor way across his room. Before Rex got up after it, Noah hooked his legs and arms over Rex and locked him down, holding Rex tight to him like a seasoned MMA pro-fighter.

"Damn you!" Rex cursed. He should be strong enough to break from Noah's hold, except that Noah had pinned him in dead locks that even the nanite master had trouble freeing from.

"When the hell did you learn judo?" Rex gave him an incredulous stare.

Noah gave a smug grin.

"What are you talking about? I've always had it in me," Noah joked.

"Ya right!" Rex refuted in a half laugh.

In actual fact, Rex really could free himself if he tried. Just that as they tousled on the floor, Rex began to enjoy their body wrestle. He figured a little tumble was good sport, since it sent his pulse racing and blood running hotly like an adrenaline rush. Everything always feels good with Noah around.

They ended up laughing more than pitting their strengths together, till Rex completely gave up after afew minutes, breathless.

"Alright, alright! Spare me! You win!" Rex panted, and it was only then Noah released him.

Noah smirked as he sat up and looked down that Rex who rolled to his back and laid splat on the floor.

"That will teach you to mess with private property."

"Well-if-you-don't-want-me-looking-at-your-phone," Rex said in between large gulps of air, then he took a long pause to catch a proper breath before continuing, "then you should just tell me what that creep texted."

Noah tensed visibly, and turned away, biting his lips.

"You don't need to know."

Rex felt his jaws tighten, flaring up. Why was Noah being so stubborn? What exactly was Noah hiding from him, his best friend?

Feeling like the Grinch was overtaking him, Rex shot up.

"I need a bath," Rex announced curtly, needing cold water to douse the steam that was rising up his head.

Rex took a long, cold shower, resting his forehead against the wall whilst the water rained on him. Of course, he knew that it was petty to make a big deal out of it – really, Noah was entitled his own privacy, and just because they were best buds, doesn't automatically mean that Rex had every right to nose into Noah's business…..

Actually, who the hell was he kidding? Rex had the staunch belief that he should have every right to know every single detail of Noah's life. Realizing his own possessiveness for Noah surprised him, but then again, for the longest time, Rex never had any cause to believe that Noah would hide secrets from him. Until he discovered this whole other Noah.

Regardless, sulking about it was not going to help. Rex came with the full intention of chilling with Noah and having fun. Slapping his cheeks a few times, Rex prepped himself to stop being a sourpuss before he dried off and exited the shower.

However, after Rex came out the bath that was next to Noah's room, Noah was nowhere to be found. Instead, he found a note on Noah's desk, apologizing for ditching him the last minute, but he had to leave as a friend had asked to meet him urgently.

Rex narrowed his eyes. It didn't take a genius to figure out who that ' _friend'_ was. He grinded his teeth, cursing the damn asshole who dared to steal his best friend from him. What sort of power did Ray possess to be able to drag Noah from their sleepover? Plus, it was late, past ten, and coupled with the weird way Noah was acting, Rex had a seriously, bad feeling about this.

Hence, he wasted no time climbing out Noah's window, and jetted off.

* * *

Rex grunted to himself in satisfaction that Noah was ten years too early to hide a secret rendezvous from him. Though he took the chance to leave while Rex was still showering, Noah had forgotten that Rex had access to GPS tracking.

And it was a good thing too, for Rex traced Noah's GPS phone signal to a run down, motel with luminous red fluorescent lighting hung above its door. Everything about it screamed a sleazy sex hotel. Rex did not like the look of things. Alarm bells rang in his head, urging him to his friend.

Rex bounded down every door like a mad hound, ripping the locks right off the cheap plywood doors so he could check who was inside.

Couples screamed and hurled vulgarities at him for interrupting them mid sex but Rex paid them no mind. Exclamation and commotions continued following after his destructive behaviour but Rex didn't care. Best the folks here take the hint and get the hell out of here before Rex tears down the building. He hurried through the corridor and floors, racing even though he was breathless, chest so tight that it felt like he would burst.

 _Noah!_

The pounding chant in his head grew painful.

Then there left the last room, right at the end of the corridor at the top floor.

Rex bashed through, breaking the door in half.

Noah was naked, bounded and gagged, handcuffed to four metal rings wedged into the wall, limbs spread eagle while Ray snapped photos of him.

The scene staked through Rex's chest, through where hot flames of anger sprung from the pain. Rex felt his charged nanites crackle, fuelled by his rage. It was as if he was Hades incarnate, housing a firestorm that raged inside him, demanding to be unleashed.

He charged straight ahead and twisted Ray's arm to his back, snapping his phone out of his hand. Ray let out a strangled scream –might be because Rex had also broken his wrist –but whatever, Rex could care less.

Rex had one eye on Noah, pained to see his best friend tortured.

Rex boiled to an impossible degree and only his innate, compassionate morals could hold him back from smashing Ray's skull on the floor.

Noah was a face of anguish, trembling as he met Rex's gaze. Then his eyes suddenly widened, staring past Rex, muffled screams escaping the leather gag. Rex took the warning and brought out his energy field, extended it in a bowed pane from his left arm, just in time to shield himself from a stream of laser beams coming in from the side, fired from the tips of a robot's outstretched fingers.

Rex was incensed with fury. He transformed his right hand into a narrow whip and wrapped Ray's neck in a strangling hold, but with just enough leeway so that Ray wouldn't choke to death. It really wasn't Rex's style to be so vicious, but he could hardly control his rage. It was like Satan had taken control of him, turning Rex's mind into Tartarus.

"Hey there, Robo," Rex snarled, "Let me guess, you had modifications installed right? Like an automatic defense system and weaponry to protect your master. Well, if I were you, I would hold my fire, otherwise your master is gonna breathe his last."

Rex doubted the humanity on that thing, instead, banked on its analytical programming to be intelligent enough to pick the right action.

However, the robot ceased firing its laser beams, only to unleash a mini missile that rocketed out from the barrel of its arm.

Rex cursed aloud and jumped aside, taking Ray with him. The missile blasted one wall to reveal the open street below, sending broken chunks, debris and a cloud of crumbled concrete dust flying in all directions.

 _Curse that bloody thing!_

Trust a robot to make a human's decision.

Rex was on all fours, coughing as the dust settled over him.

A quick glance at Noah showed him sputtering as well, but he seemed unhurt by the wall blast.

Rex caught Ray by his neck before the fellow could escape. He squeezed Ray's body and shook him violently, barking at his face.

"You idiotic bastard! Better call that thing off before I incapacitate you!"

Ray grunted, choking out in a constrained voice, "Alright, alright, ZD003, hold your fire!"

The robot's eyes blinked twice in red light.

"Command overruled. Previous orders specified to protect master from danger at all costs."

Then it unleashed another missile.

"Fuck!" Rex yelled, dodging the fire-head, swinging Ray around in the air.

"Stop, shut down, I order you!" Ray screamed hysterically.

The room was small and crammed, so mindful to not let Noah be hurt in the fight, Rex bounded towards the gaping hole to exit the room, carelessly whizzing Ray along, causing the other to slam onto the wall right before he leapt out and released his jet pack. Rex grinned to himself nastily in self-satisfaction upon hearing Ray's grunts of pain –that asshole deserved it.

Rex hovered in mid-air with the streets four floors down, several yards from the room with Ray clutched within one arm as he regarded the robot that moved forward towards the broken wall.

Down beneath Rex, people were filing out the building, running butt naked or in various states of undress, panicking at the abrupt war tearing above their heads.

Ray's robot stopped just short of the giant hole and poised over the ledge, head twitching in rhythm to eyes that rapidly blinked interchanging colors of amber and green.

"Shut down override –Prior commands remain absolute," the robot suddenly halted its epileptic twitch and announced in an eerie, soulless voice before reloading another missile. "I must protect master at all costs."

"You idiot! Stop! You're killing me! Not protecting me!" Ray tried again, screaming.

The robot did not listen. It fired twin missiles that spun on its nose in a straight line towards them. Rex turned his free hand into his giant Funchuck to smash the incoming missiles, which blew up harmlessly.

Two missiles followed immediately after. Rex cursed aloud furiously.

"Ray, you ass! Just how many missiles that you put in that thing?"

When there came no answer, Rex cast a glance at the trembling guy hanging for his dear life on his chest, while bashing the other two missiles with his nanite construct. Ray looked green in the face, cupping his mouth with his hand, looking sick, as if he was sitting in a wide roller coaster ride.

"Tch! You better not puke all over my nanites or you're road kill, got it?" Rex threatened then loaded up his own weapon.

"And for you, I've had enough. Have a taste of my fire power!" Rex declared, thoroughly pissed, and released his mega beam at the robot, frying it to crisps.

At last, it was down, falling straight down lifelessly and smashing on the ground with a resounding thud.

Rex slowly lowered himself to regard the down robot. It was charred and twitching in spasms, with some of its parts detached, or broken, revealing its internal wires. It crackled with faint electric blue lines, repeating over and over about needing to protect its master like a broken radio.

"Humph," Rex grunted, head shaking, "Noah was right. You're just a bunch of wires."

Then Rex turned his attention to Ray, who collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath, clutching at his chest as if he was having a heart attack.

 _What a wimp,_ Rex thought to himself in disgust and held him by the scruff of his neck.

"I'm not done with you, asshole," Rex seethed, and shot back up to where Noah was, with Ray in tow.

Rex released his nanites from his jetpack construct, rehousing them in his body when his feet touched the ledge. Then he unceremoniously dropped Ray and bounded across the room to Noah. He gently removed the gag around Noah and cut the restraining chains with a small axe he made with one hand, keeping one eye on Noah's anguished face.

Noah turned the other way, unable to meet Rex's gaze, no doubt filled with shame and terror. Rex bit his lips, at loss for words to comfort him. When he freed Noah from the last constraints, Noah stumbled forwards and fell weakly against him, but suddenly jolted and pushed himself off Rex, staggering sideways as if it terrified him to touch even Rex.

"Noah!" Rex cried, "It's okay, it's just me, Rex! Your buddy!" Rex reached out for him, but Noah withdrew further back, arms hugging himself in protection, head downcast.

Rex shook, trembling in a mirror image of Noah. He had no idea what to do.

His fists balled, shaking uncontrollably. _Damn, stupid EVO!_ Rex scolded himself. He couldn't even comfort his friend. Was late to stop such horrors too.

Sized with a torrent of emotions that swam and tore at him, he turned his attention to Ray.

"Fuck you," Rex spat, "Damn you to hell!"

Rex fisted Ray's tee and plowed his face, delivering blow after blow and throwing curses.

"What the hell did you do?! Tell me!"

Ray tried but failed to protect his face, crying and groaning in pain whilst struggling to free himself.

Blood was everywhere. But Rex couldn't stop. He was seeing red.

"No, Rex, stop, you'll kill him," Noah's voice finally came from behind, small, but pleading.

Rex's fist froze mid-punch, throwing a glance back at his friend.

Finally, Noah looked at him, eyes glazed with unshed tears. Noah was shaking his head slowly, lips drawn tight.

Rex exhaled a deep breath and gave Ray one last violent shake, lifting him up off the floor till his legs dangled.

"Just photos!" Ray gasped, hands clawing weakly at Rex's hands.

Rex dropped him so that the fiend dropped heavily onto the floor. Then Rex searched the ground for the mobile phone he saw Ray use earlier.

"No!" Noah breathed, eyes going large as Rex picked up Ray's phone, "Please…. Rex… no…"

It was a gaze that could have ripped Rex's heart right off his chest. He knew that whatever photos were in there, Noah did not want him to see. Rex could barely fight the urge to rip Ray into shreds. He gritted his teeth and turned around to said asshole, who'd curled up limp in a bloody ball.

"All the disgusting shit you did. It's all here? Nowhere else?"

Ray nodded meekly.

Rex snapped the phone into half and crushed it with metal hands, then fried it into crisps with an electric charge.

He squatted next to Ray, sprinkling the ashes of the fried gadget over the asshole's head.

"You better pray that's all you have. If you dare to blackmail Noah, or if I ever see or hear from you again, you'll end up like your phone."

Ray's eyes balled in fear and terror immediately.

"Six, Providence, anyone," Rex radioed into the comm-link that he always wore.

"We read you, Providence Command here."

"I've got trash that needs picking."

"What for?"

"I'll give you details later. In short, just know that this guy made some illegal weaponry modifications to his domestic service bot," Rex briefed, "I'm sending you the coordinates now.

Rex then picked up the metal chains that Ray used on Noah to tie the fiend up, bounding him to a pillar on the opposite side, facing away from Noah so that his best friend do not have to be tortured with the sight of the creep. Rex could barely keep from squeezing the chains round his neck, and had to use every ounce of self-restraint he had to keep from killing the man.

Once done, he turned back to face Noah, who had slid down onto the floor, knees up against his chest, left shoulder sagged against the wall.

"Noah," Rex tried again, licking his lips and taking a fraction of a step forward.

Noah's gaze flickered to Rex's feet.

"Noah, don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," Rex assured firmly, but in gentle tones.

"I-I know," Noah choked out, voice cracking, fingers clawing at his shoulders, "But I, I can't, I can't be near you right now."

"Then don't, but at least, let me bring you to the hospital. You need help," Rex suggested gently, then took off his jacket.

Rex started a few paces forward, holding his jacket on outstretched arms. When Noah didn't shrink away, Rex dared to creep closer slowly, step by step.

"No," Noah shook his head, lips quivering, "I'll be fine."

"Noah… you need help. Let me help you," Rex insisted.

"J-Just leave me alone, god damn it!" Noah cried, brows knitted together, tears welling within in his large, agonized gaze.

"No," Rex was resolute, "Never again, Noah. I'mma dog you for life. I should've come earlier. I'm sorry Noah, sorry I came late."

"Rex!" Noah rasped out, shoulders shaking. The dam burst, tears spilling over.

Rex closed the remaining five steps that instant, dropping to his knees and throwing his jacket over his best friend, then pulled Noah into his chest.

"It's okay, Noah. I'm here now, I'll protect you," Rex chanted over and over atop Noah's forehead.

Noah didn't pull away, instead, buried his face into the crook of Rex's neck.

For the first time since Rex couldn't remember when, Noah sobbed, whimpering uncontrollably.

Resilient Noah, sturdy Noah, tough Noah, comedic Noah –the one who accompanied him from time to time in his crazy battles with fiends, who scolds him in his anxiety yet still dives head-long to aid him despite his fears, the one who makes wise-cracks with the most damning of faces without a flinch –Rex felt his heart tear at the sight of his best friend reduced to such a state.

So Rex did the only thing he could do –he embraced his friend, stroking his back gently and holding him until he calms down.

Minutes had passed by the time Noah quieted. They had fallen into a seating position on the floor, with Rex's back against the wall and Noah seated sideways between his thighs, shoulders leaning on his chest.

Rex's neck was entirely wet, and the neckline of his tee was soaked as well, as if Noah had rained Niagara on him. There might be snot too, since Noah kept sniffling, nose stuffy and runny at the same time. But Rex didn't care, he just wanted Noah to be okay.

Noah's breathing was heavy, filling the room and he still trembled faintly, shaken by the ordeal. But at least he crying stopped.

By then, Rex picked up on the sounds that signalled Providence's approach, and took it as their cue to leave before Providence catches them in this position. Rex was sure Noah would die of embarrassment.

"C'mon, time to go. Providence is here," Rex nudged Noah gently.

Noah threw a quick glance over the pillar where Ray was tied up behind it.

"What about…" he trailed, not able to finish his line.

Rex got his meaning anyway.

"Providence can clean up here without me. You're my number one priority now."

Rex carefully helped Noah up, supporting his back.

"We should get a doctor to look at you."

"No, that's not necessary," Noah began, pulling Rex's jacket closer around his shoulders, "Just get me home."

"But – "

"I just wanna go home, Rex," Noah repeated urgently, voice cracking.

Rex sighed. He disagreed with Noah. Even though he'd discreetly looked Noah over and could find no visible injuries, except for the red marks and bruises around his wrists and ankles where he was initially bound, there was no telling if Noah was injured elsewhere that could not be seen.

"Noah," Rex tried again, "if you have injuries, you need to – "

"Rex!" Noah interrupted in a forceful tone and looked him dead straight in the eye, "I don't have any. I promise you. Nothing else happened."

Rex nodded as she shifted his feet into the Slyder and gently tugged Noah's hand. As Noah climbed aboard behind him, Rex looked around the room one last time for another important piece of item that he had overlooked.

Spotting the pile on the floor, Rex asked.

"Noah, your clothes."

Noah flinched immediately, fingers that were curled round Rex's tee sleeve, tightened.

Without a word, Rex slowly hovered over to the messy pile on the floor and bent over to reach for them. He stiffened midpoint when picking them off the floor, eyes balling as he sized up the garments that were ripped in half.

"Leave them," Noah's voice was tight.

"I'll dump them somewhere else later," Rex said instead and quickly rolled them into a bundle and tucked it under one arm.

He didn't want providence picking it up as evidence and go sniffing at Noah's door. No need to make Noah relive tales of terror in their investigations.

The flight back was cold without his jacket, the night wind slapping against his chest and arms. Which was why Rex rarely went anywhere without his jacket. At least his back was warm, as Noah huddled behind him, arms wound round his waist for support as they soared above the streets and houses.

Despite Rex blocking most of the wind from Noah, he could still feel his buddy shivering slightly, since he was practically still naked, save for the jacket.

Poor Noah's legs must be freezing. But at this time of night, all the shops were already closed so they won't be able to get Noah new stuff to wear. And Rex still hasn't thrown Noah's torn clothing, not wanting to waste time finding a dumpster.

Rex sensed that all Noah wanted was a hot, clean bath and a good huddle on his bed to recover his spirit, to sleep and try to forget about his ordeal. So Rex sped as fast as he could whilst keeping a straight flight so that Noah wouldn't have difficulty balancing.

Finally, Rex recognized the silhouette of the neatly trimmed hedges and flowerbeds adorning the front lawn of Noah's place. Plus Patrick was out there, helping Noah's dad with getting his luggage out the trunk of a rover on their driveway.

Noah stiffened the moment Rex started their descent.

"Shit! No, no, Rex!" Noah panicked, "We can't go back now!"

Rex halted that instant, knowing made Noah suddenly change his mind.

"Noah, you can't avoid your dad forever," Rex tried persuading gently, craning his neck round to see him.

Noah gave him the most agonized look, cerulean eyes glistening like the lake under the moon, welling with tears again.

"It's the other way around. He doesn't want to see me."

Rex felt his heart bleed.

"Right, change of plans then. I know the perfect place," Rex began softly, then reached up Noah's face to wipe an escaping tear with a thumb, "to make you forget about all the bad stuff."

* * *

They buried their toes into the sand on Cabo Luna beach and warmed their palms in front of the small bonfire that Rex made.

Rex had earlier made a beeline for this place since returning to Noah's house was out of the question.

It was uncommon for the small resort to have tourist checking in at the last minute in the middle of the night. But the owner was used to Rex dropping by suddenly over the years, and immediately welcomed them warmly, giving them hot drinks and a chalet. Then even without Rex asking, the boss gave a Noah a fresh set of simple clothes – a plain tunic and linen trousers.

He was one of those people who have had a loved one turn EVO. So since the worldwide cure, the boss sort of gave Rex special privilege as gratitude, by letting him stay for free for nights at a time. Hence, Cabo Luna became another special place for Rex and Noah to chill and unwind after tough periods.

Noah spent nearly forever in the bath, and though Rex waited patiently at first to allow Noah his space and time for healing, eventually, he threatened to bang down the door, worried that Noah had collapsed inside since he'd remained quiet all the way.

Then, Rex dragged a sombre and gloomy Noah down the beach, where he started a fire with some wood and matchsticks, and tossed in the ripped clothing together with some leaves.

Noah looked puzzled by what Rex was doing, but remained silent all the way, just mutely observing.

They stood side by side, watching the flames dance in gradients of yellows and orange, ashes and smoke climbing up into the dark sky, neither speaking for a long time. The sky was alive with a plethora of stars, casting them in soft, luminous hue of white-washed blues, bright enough to see one another and make out silhouettes for distances around them, even in the dark hours of the night. And the fires before them gave plenty of lighting for Rex to see Noah's face as he studied his best friend intently.

"I'm glad you burnt them," finally, Noah was the first to speak, tone soft, but strong and no longer cracked with heavy emotion.

Rex nodded and stiffed a sigh of relief. He'd been hoping to turn Noah's mood around, so desperate to make him feel better that he resorted to such absurd actions.

"Let the mighty flames claim that which…" Rex paused, struggling to remember the quote that he'd from heard somewhere before, "demons? Was it? or whatever something whatever bad shit, and then from its ashes there rises your smoke –no, not smoke –spirit, supposedly, renewed and lightened – like a Phoenix? – something like that."

Noah cracked up the next instant, doubling over so hard in exaggerated laughter that he collapsed on his knees and hands.

Rex stared at the sudden madness that overcame Noah.

"Hey? Whatever was that for?"

Noah could barely reply, only coughed up garbled words between fits of laughter. It was enough for Rex to get his meaning anyway.

Rex folded his arms over his chest, lightly crossed and a little embarrassed. He was seriously trying to say something meaningful, in fact, had thought about it all through the flight here. Of course, Rex doesn't believe in mambo jumbo, but he had no other ideas on how to help Noah let go of the demons. The idea he could come up with, was burning Noah's clothes. But when it seemed like Noah thought it was stupid, Rex burned a little, feeling somewhat foolish.

"Yea, sure, cheer up at my expanse, alright?"

"S-sorry man, it's just – you! Rex! Talking in poems? – Thought I'd never live to see the day!" Noah continued taunting in between laughs, "Where the hell did you hear that from?"

"I don't know, Caesar, I guess. He tells me random stuff when he pops by sometimes. Talks non-stop about it," Rex shrugged, "and I think some cultures really do this as traditions, to burn away bad stuff as an act of releasing and cleansing the soul."

Noah had his bum half buried into the soft sand, laughter slowly dying down as he calmed himself.

"Yea, I know what you mean. It worked. I guess," Noah rested an elbow over a bent knee, nodding thoughtfully.

Then he erupted into sudden laughters again.

"But I think your ridiculous poetry is better. You stink so bad it's hilarious!"

"Alright, quit making fun of the guy trying to help you! You're asking for a fight, aren't ya!" Rex shouted –mock yell, really –then dived down onto Noah, attempting to jab him, poke him, tickle him – whatever it is, to get back at his friend.

They ended up wrestling and thrashing about in the sand, laughing between pants and mock banters. But unlike the hard floor in Noah's room, the sand was soft, so it was tough to get a complete grip or balance, so the boys were flipping over and over atop one another, neither winning.

Until finally, Noah screamed and kicked like a small kid.

"Argh! Sand in my eyes! SAND in my eyes!"

Rex backed off into a kneeling position and hunched over Noah, concerned.

But Noah hooked his arm over Rex's neck and flipped him on his back.

"Gotcha!" Noah laughed his head off as he quickly jumped off.

"Damn you!" Rex yelled into the sky, "You're not getting away!"

Rex got up on one knee and slung his nanites forward, extending them from his arms and raced to catch Noah who had bounded away. Lightning fast, Noah barely dodged Rex's metal arms, twisting this way and that.

Irritation quickly turned to humour as Noah looked like comedic sight, leaping and dancing on the sand between Rex's arms.

Rex chuckled at the scene, and continued taunting his friend whilst remaining relaxed on the sand. Soon enough, Noah was tired out and tripped, allowing Rex to get a firm grip round his waist.

"Ha hah! Gotcha!" Rex gave a triumphant cry and deftly dragged a screaming and protesting Noah a few yards across the sand.

"Rex! You dick! Now I've got sand all over my hair!" Noah complained, pushing himself up on his elbows and rummaged his hair with his hands when Rex released him.

"Well, now we're equal – I'll forever remember your ridiculous rain-dancing," Rex smirked, "Besides, you have sand all over already anyways. Just take another bath."

Noah rolled onto his back and sighed.

"Maybe later. I'm tired now."

A sudden lull came over, mood quickly mellowed from the energetic spurts they had not two seconds ago. But it was ok. Noah was just feeling peaceful. Rex could sense it.

He gingerly shuffled over to Noah and laid on the sand on Noah's left, looking up at an ocean of stars that winked at them.

"The evil bot cut my clothes," Noah suddenly revealed.

Rex bolted upright that instant and stared down at Noah with an incredulous gaze.

"What?"

Noah shrugged.

"Well, not like it was its fault – Ray ordered it to," Noah added nonchalantly, but he wouldn't meet Rex's gaze, telling Rex that he was still mortified and traumatized by the incident.

Rex felt his blood boil again.

"Fuck!" He spat and combed his hand over his hair, gripping his fringe with renewed anger and agitation. "I should have torn that metal head limb by limb! Rip out all his circuits!"

"Well, you destroyed it anyways. That's good enough for me," Noah shifted his gaze to Rex's face, holding his stare.

"Then maybe I should have done the same to the bastard creep," Rex said through clenched teeth, balling his fists, regretting not putting more punches into Ray.

Noah sat up, laying a gentle hand on Rex's bicep.

"No, you shouldn't have to go to jail for an asshole like him. I'm glad you were the better man."

"No, I wasn't, Noah, I'm not," Rex gave Noah a hard stare, voice cracking, "If you hadn't stopped me, if you weren't there, right in the same room, then I might not have stopped. I might have cracked his skull, punched his brains right out, smashed it."

"Rex –"

"Noah!" Rex grabbed Noah's hands and squeezed his fingers within his grip, "I couldn't think straight – I was so pissed. When I was chaining him up, all I could think of, was how I wanted to squeeze the metal around his neck, and pull until his veins pop! I wanted to choke all the air our of -"

"Don't-" Noah begged, lips quivering, as he put his free hand over Rex's lips.

Rex shut up immediately and loosened his grip on Noah's hand, inwardly chiding himself to be careful in his approach. He did not want the mood to turn back south.

"Please don't. You're not like that psychopath – you don't like to hurt others, not even EVOs, so don't say shit like that."

Rex nodded.

"Yea, you're right, I don't enjoy inflicting pain on others. Doesn't mean that he doesn't deserve some good old whacking. Anyway, justice will be served. Providence will lock him behind bars for good."

Noah heaved a heavy sigh and rested the side of his head on Rex's right shoulder.

"Thanks Rex, for saving me," Noah breathed softly, "Right in the nick of time, really, to come to think of it."

"Well, I could have come earlier, if I'd known that you were going out with him, I would have followed you. I already sensed there was something fishy about him," Rex said dryly, "And you know, didn't you? That he was bad news. That's why you hated even the sight of him. So why did you still go out to meet him?"

"Because he blackmailed me!" Noah beat his hands onto the sand, sending tiny grains flying, "I didn't know until he texted me earlier, that he has photos – from our past encounter – and he threatened to release them on the net."

Rex felt his veins throb, and he fought between between showing care and understanding towards for his best friend versus being downright bloody angry that Noah let himself be victim-trapped. But damn it was driving him crazy that Noah had been hurt before by the prick and Rex didn't even know about it, and so couldn't even help!

"Look, I won't push you to tell me details of your past if you don't want to. But given the danger you had been in, didn't you go to the cops?"

"That wasn't something… I could just talk about," Noah folded his elbows across his knees and narrowed his gaze at Rex, blue eyes beginning to flash in irritation, "Besides, he never got far on his sick torture – I managed to escape before I got really hurt. So all I wanted was just to forget the shit ever happened. Luckily, I never mentioned anything about my school and what not, and never exchanged contacts with him. So I thought that would be the end of it. It was just my dumb luck to bump into him again now."

Noah grunted in a mix of exasperation and frustration when he finished, and planted his chin atop his elbows, rocking himself back and forth in restless anxiety.

"Well," Rex replied after a long moment of silence, "Then you should have come to me, Noah."

Noah stiffened, then rocked back and forth more fiercely.

Rex gently pulled Noah's shoulders back, and when Noah lifted his head and turned to face Rex, he felt his chest pull with unbearable ache at the agonized look on Noah's face. At that point, Rex was sure he would die of heart pain if he had to face Noah's pained expression for any more in that night.

"It was shit humiliating, Rex, how was I supposed to tell you?" Noah replied weakly, voice shaking.

Rex gave Noah's shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Even if it is, tell me. As long as something, or someone is hurting you, I have to know," Rex insisted firmly, then paused, struggling to find the words.

What could he do, Rex wondered, to lift the torture from Noah's spirit? How could he convince Noah that his safety was more important than anything else? How could he explain that there was nothing that Noah could do to turn Rex away?

"Noah, I mean it, no more secrets from now onwards. You have no idea how scared I was. If something more had happened, Noah, I…" Rex choked up, not able to continue.

Not able to say that he might lose his sanity.

Noah's lower lips quivered.

"I'm sorry, Rex, I was scared too, for a million reasons. Especially scared you'd find me disgusting."

"That creep is the disgusting one! Not you!" Rex assured, "So don't ever, let anyone bait you again."

"I won't," Noah promised, "the next bastard who tries to blackmail me, will meet your fists within twelve hours."

"Hah! I'm the king of speed, so make that twelve minutes!"

"Oh, yea, you show off!" Noah elbowed Rex's sides, "You better make sure then – I'll time you!"

Both of them laughed lightly at that, mood seemingly turning a one-eighty, lightening by leaps and bounds from the solemn mood just seconds ago.

Then Noah sighed deeply, still shaking just faintly.

"I swear, Noah, I'm always here, come hell or high water, I'm here. So don't you ever be afraid, ever," Rex reassured him, wanting to make sure that Noah fully understood that.

"Rex," Noah said simply in a soft voice, tone pleading, eyes lustrous against the dark sea behind him. In that moment, Rex felt that Noah was still aching, wanting and in need of something. Noah was looking miles relieved, but somehow, Rex thought that sadness still tinged the tips of his eyes and lips, a blue aura that Rex can see just faintly, but not quite discern the reason.

Of course, Rex rationaled inwardly, that it would still take some more time for Noah to completely get over what he went through. But at least, Noah seemed alright, much more alive than the breathing zombie he was with through the flight over.

Whilst Rex was scrambling to put his thoughts in order, thinking up of more ways to comfort Noah, and how to cheer him up, Noah moved his hand to Rex's knee, and inched his head closer.

Rex felt that Noah wanted something from him right that moment, and the instant Rex realized what that was, he found Noah's lips on his.

His best friend's lips on his, again.

But this time, Noah moved his lips against his, questing and insistent, and even a little impatient.

It was a little awkward – the notion of kissing his best friend in a way that was more than a peck. But it wasn't unpleasant, and in fact, Rex's pulse quickened, a little excited.

So Rex indulged him.

Their lips were both dry and chapped from sitting out so long in the chilly night air, so their lip-lock was rather coarse, until their mild kiss became more fervent and bold. Lips moving harder against each other, widening their jaws to deepen the kiss, Rex found satisfying wetness coating his lips, and felt a thrill running down his spine to the very tips of his toes.

His heart hammered loudly in his ears, drowning out the sounds of the waves crashing on the shore. Equally loud were their pants and heavy breaths which intermingled like their lips that became melded together in a mad tousle.

To say it was excitable, was an understatement. Rex was fired up, uncaring of reason why he was swallowing his best friend's mouth and drinking in his gasps. His blood raced like thunderous beasts stampeding along every vein in his body, making him pound with unbearable desire for more of the travesty that has suddenly taken hold.

When they finally broke apart, they panted hard, needing to catch their breaths after their zealous recreation.

Noah didn't say a word and just laid back down on the sand, closing his eyes, looking peaceful.

Rex struggled to calm himself down, stunned by what had suddenly overcame them. Gathering his scattered thoughts, he wondered if that was a comfort kiss, and if that was what Noah wanted. Was it enough? Was Noah really doing alright?

Looking down at his friend, Rex could see Noah was content to sleeping out here.

They'll likely freeze to death. So he went back to their cabin to grab a huge blanket, then went back to lay by Noah's side, spreading the comforter over the both of them.

Rex was quiet on his thoughts for the longest while, enjoying the smell of the sea filling his nostrils, the cooling air on his cheeks as well as the lingering feel of Noah's warm, urging lips over his.

* * *

Rex was brain dead.

He'd hardly slept a wink. He never had difficulty falling asleep before. Of course, he was a light sleeper, since he'd to be up and ready for missions at any time of day. But he could easily fall right back to la la land once he closed his eyes.

Yet Rex was up for hours last night, catching an hour or so sleep only when dawn approached, then was rudely woken by the cruel early morning rays boring over his eyelids.

And damn the cause of his insomnia who unlike him, was able to sleep without a care in the world like a baby, right beside him.

Rex was still trying to understand how he and Noah moved from pressing lips against each other, to a full blown make out the night before.

He couldn't help asking himself what would happen when Noah woke. Would things change between them? What did it mean when Noah kissed him like that?

Turns out, he'd worriedly needlessly, as when Noah woke, he totally acted like nothing had happened.

He just complained about regretting falling asleep in the sand.

"Man this stuff is everywhere!" Noah said in annoyance as he tried to dust the sand off his hair to no avail.

"Relax, not like they're ants or anything," Rex couldn't keep from laughing at Noah's overreaction.

"I need a bath," Noah said in resignation then looked down at himself, "And new clothes."

"Right, with preferably a green jacket, right?"

Noah stared at Rex with a killer glare. Rex pinched himself for making a joke out of it. Since Noah's favourite green jacket was ripped by the EVO-drug trafficker, he'd stopped wearing it even though a tailor had already mended it. Noah was worried about further damaging it and the topic has been a touchy one ever since.

"Nothing, can ever replace the green jacket," Noah emphasized, looking at him dead in the eye.

They ended up getting another green one anyway, after Rex forced Noah to try every color in every shop. For reasons beyond Rex, Noah acted like his old jacket was his lover or something.

In the midst of Rex's incessant teasing, Noah explained.

"Look, look at us, we're buddies, right? We've been through thick and thin. And I wouldn't ever dump you for any reason, so why should I dump my jacket when it's been with me all these years?"

Rex could only give him a bemused stare.

"But I'm human, why are you comparing me to a piece of clothing?"

Noah stared heavenward at that, conceding defeat. Rex shook his head, chuckling at his friend.

Aside from their usual playful banter, Rex was relieved the morning assumed like normal, with Noah not showing even a hint of yesterday's depression. Rex didn't doubt Noah's strength – he was already moving on, getting past the horrible incident. But he pondered if Noah dwelled on their make out the way Rex did. It didn't seem so, as Noah didn't mention anything about that, and didn't appear awkward with Rex at all.

Maybe it was just a one-off thing, something casual that Noah wouldn't think twice about between guys – after all, he liked guys. And maybe Noah just wanted that kind of 'extra' consolation since he was feeling vulnerable. Rex honestly didn't mind it. He obviously wasn't attracted to guys, but the kiss was… something hell of a shock – since he was excited by it. He couldn't deny it, but asides from the body talk, Rex didn't feel any different towards Noah from before.

Hanging out, having fun, talked animatedly about all kinds of shit – Rex was enjoying his day with Noah just like any other. It was completely normal thus far.

So Rex stuffed all his bothersome worries and questions to the back of his mind. No use deliberating on such ramblings if Noah was cool about the whole thing.

Then Mrs Nixon called in the middle of the day, cutting short their shopping.

Rex knew from Noah's face as they spoke that there wasn't good news. At least, not what they didn't already know. From what Rex could gather, his mom was apologetic that his dad suddenly returned home last night. She tried to convince Noah to come back for dinner tonight, but Noah was against it.

Then once he hung up, he held a hand up to Rex.

"No," Noah immediately said.

"But I haven't even said anything."

"I know what you're gonna say, and it's 'no'. I'm not going back there so long as he's there."

"Why are you being so stubborn?" Rex tried again, perplexed that the father and son who used to have the tightest bond ever, seemed to scorn each other's presence now.

"I told you. It's not me. It's him – he was the one who told me to 'get the fuck out and don't ever let me see your face again!'"

"Noah, c'mon, it wouldn't kill you to show your face. Just try, I mean, I'm with you, the both of us can try to talk sense into your dad," Rex tried again. Seeing the scrunched up face and agony evident in Noah's hunched and brooding posture, Rex was knew that they shouldn't leave things as they were.

Noah snorted, folding his arms.

"Yea right, and if things go sour?"

"Then we'll leave, and come back another day."

"Seriously Rex? You should know when it's time to quit."

"But I'm not a quitter, thought you knew that."

Noah was about to argue when his phone beeped with messages. He huffed and checked it instead.

Then his brows shot up in surprise.

"Hey, check it," Noah held his phone up to let Rex see, "The twins invited us to another concert… and lo behold! It's tonight!"

"Yea so? We're not going to another slumber event."

"Of course we are! They're world-class performers – people pay huge bucks to see them but we're going for free! We aren't who we are if we don't make use of this good deal," Noah chirped happily as he tucked his phone into the pocket of his new jeans.

Rex folded his arms.

"This is obviously a good excuse for you not to return home."

Noah grinned.

"Stop moping Rex. It's time for more shopping. We need them snazzy suits!"

"What? Why? I can just pop by Providence and borrow Six's jacket," Rex exclaimed, incredulous. Mostly because he has no money to buy a suit.

"Yea right, I'm not gonna be embarrassed again by that. Don't worry about the price tag, we passed by some rentals earlier – I'm sure we can snap up some suits at a good price."

* * *

"Shit, why are there so many people? I thought the twins said it's only a thirty-minute concert instead of the usual two-hours long," Noah grumbled under his breath, "I can't believe hordes of these people paid shit loads of money and came all the way here just for a thirty-minute performance.

Rex sniggered.

"Why are you so concerned with the crowd? Unless, you're embarrassed to be seen in your suit?" Rex taunted.

"Are you kidding? Of course I don't want to be seen in this horrible green! I'll be the joke of the celebrity world when I make my theatre debut," Noah complained in an exaggerated manner.

"There, there, bad publicity is still good publicity," Rex assured him, patting his shoulders fondly, then laughed as Noah tried to duck behind Rex.

"Shit, I can't be seen. I think the paparazzi is there."

Rex let out a gwaffle and was met his Noah's loud shush. Rex paid Noah no mind and adjusted Six's jacket proudly, posing in front of the flashing cameras.

In the end, the rental choices were so bad that Noah grudging conceded even Six's wardrobe was better. Which was why the both of them were at the prestigious theatre house as men in green.

"I really don't see anything bad with Six's suit. Maybe you're just being over dramatic."

"Are you color blind?"

"It's a perfectly respectable color."

"In all respect, Rex, it's horrible."

"But it's free!" Rex stressed loudly, flinging out his arms, "so how bad can it be?"

Noah cringed and slapped his palms to his forehead behind Rex.

"Please, can we just quickly get into our seats to hide?"

Rex just laughed, completely unbothered, but let Noah drag him in a hurried manner into the auditorium. An usher helped them into their seats, which they found was a private box with two chairs just for them.

"Great!" Rex was overjoyed, "Perfect for sleeping!"

"Hmm, yea, actually, that, I can't agree more," Noah stated, then they exchanged glances and laughed.

It took what seemed like forever for the hall to be filled with audience, and another eternity for Gabe and Michael to appear and start the show. Rex lost track of time as he drifted in and out of sleep, and imagined himself as a game character in one of his favourite video game.

He jolted awake when he felt a sharp nudge to his sides.

"Hey, that's rude," Rex glared at Noah, who just clapped his shoulder and looked jumpy in his seat.

"Just listen! Rex!"

"What, isn't it just some boring – " Rex's eyes widened, suddenly realizing the tune in his dream, wasn't a dream at all – the twins were actually playing a score of the game song!

He looked at Noah, face in amazement, then back at the twins. Hell, it was way more interesting listening to it and so, darn cool.

When the song ended, Rex nearly didn't want it to end.

"You know, we should get the twins to make a recording of this and give us a track. So I can set it as my alarm."

"Shhh!" Noah slapped his arm, "They're about to speak!"

"….and gentlemen, thank you for being here tonight, even for this short piece. I'm sure many of you are surprised by the unusual composition of this piece," Gabe started in his guiding but rich, pleasant voice.

"We've actually put together this piece as special thanks to two of our friends," Michael continued, and lifted a hand in Rex's and Noah's direction, much to their surprise, " for the help that they've provided us in a matter of that was very dear and important to us."

"Many times, there are people amongst us, heroes if you will, who are fighting battles for the good of others. But most of us don't always see their efforts, nor the sacrifices that they make.

It is only when we are directly affected, that we feel their impact, see their importance, and see the strengths and compassion of their hearts.

So here and now, we wish to thank them, from the bottom of our hearts."

The brothers took turns in their speech, and when they ended, the audience, hundreds of heads, all turned to Rex's and Noah's direction and broke into thunderous applause,

Rex and Noah faced each other, and beamed.

Come the end of the concert, the street was swarmed with chauffeurs in limos rolled up to pick up the celebs and important figures. And the A-listers and who's who were still gathered in pockets of groups on the lawn, socializing whilst waiting for their rides.

Rex and Noah didn't face the same problem as them –he could whip out any form of aerial transport anywhere. But they opted for a low-key exit, so they strolled side by side along the sidewalk down from the theatre house.

An usher informed them earlier that the two Maestros were engaged in long interviews after the performance, so wouldn't be able to meet them like the previous occasion. Hence, they sent the usher to pass them a CD instead.

Now, looking over the track titles printed on the back cover of the CD case, Rex hummed happily as he ticked off his top ten favorite games. He couldn't believe that the twins actually made a score out of all his beloved games.

He asked if Noah was in on all this, but Noah was just as flabbergasted as he was.

"I only texted them a list of our favourite games because they asked. Said some gaming company approached them to do a score, so they were doing some research!" Noah explained and showed him his message chat with them.

Rex scrolled through several long messages and became surprised reading them. Aside from them giving their thanks for busting the trade ring last week, which was all over the news, they also thanked Noah for suggesting that they attend counselling sessions with Coach. They said that Coach has been flaring better the whole week, even without the nanite patches.

"Woa, since when did you suggest it to them?" Rex asked.

"Right on the day after our epic battle."

"Hmm, what made you think of it?"

Noah shrugged.

"I just thought that this was better. Coach's insecurities lie on the inside, that's the only reason why he turned to the patch. Busting the ring would only cut off the supply, but it wouldn't solve anything. So I suggested the twins seek professional counselling. Maybe it would work."

Rex couldn't help but wear a dazed smile. He never failed to be amazed that Noah could be so thoughtful and insightful at times. Just like how Noah had always accepted him as who he was, an EVO, and was open minded about some of the tough, moral conundrums they'd faced.

Rex suspected that part of the reason he could persevere with what he's doing, was because of Noah's support and levelheadedness, all these years, aside from Six and the others, of course.

It's just such a wonder that Noah couldn't apply his wisdom to the guys he hooked up with, like Ray, for instance. But given the horrid nature of the issue, Rex didn't want to remind Noah of his ordeal by asking why Noah was attracted to a sicko like that. Instead, Rex remembered the long, unhealthy queue of men who spammed Noah's phone and were still probably waiting for his reply.

So Rex took the risk of facing Noah's wrath asking about that.

Sure enough, Noah stared daggers at him, and warned Rex to never, ever, secretly check his phone.

Then he added, "And like I already said, I'm _not_ a human toilet bowl! I don't even know any of them. They're just random spam from this porn website that I subscribe to."

"Oh," Rex said simply, suddenly feeling like such an idiot for getting so worked up in the first place. "So, you mean they don't actually know you? Only your name?"

"Yea, they're _just_ spam."

"So you've never had sex with any of them?"

"Jeez, Rex, I'm sure I was speaking in English."

"Okay, okay, sorry. I'm just curious. So who were the ones you got interested enough to sleep with? Were there a lot of them? And like, do you find them at gay clubs or…?"

Noah's brows deepened with every question that Rex threw at him. But Rex couldn't stop himself, needing to get these vexing things off his chest that bad been bothering him all week.

"Would you quit with the interrogation? I don't ask you how many girls you've fucked, do I?"

Rex opened and closed his mouth like a gaping fish as he struggled with a comeback, but had nothing.

Noah sighed after a few seconds and relented anyway.

"Fine, well, there's only been a few, but it's not important. I don't even remember them. It's just a casual fling –they never meant anything."

"Really?" Rex tried not to sound steely. For some reason, Rex felt agitated just hearing confirmation that Noah had indeed, slept around with other guys. Maybe it was because Rex had always announced to Noah whenever he had sex with Circe, or the few other nameless chicks here and there.

It just didn't seem fair that Noah didn't do the same. How the hell could Noah have kept it from Rex?

Just thinking about it made Rex pissed, so he couldn't help continuing in less-than-controlled acidic remark.

"But you enjoyed it, right? Even giving blowjobs last week."

Noah rolled his eyes.

"Rex, are you trying to get on my bad side?" Noah asked through gritted teeth, folding his arms. "Of course I do _not_ enjoy sucking off that jerk last week. In fact, I fucking hated it. He isn't even remotely pleasing in any way."

"Then why do you do it? I mean, I know why, but how could you stand it?"

"It doesn't matter, it's just a blow job, not like I have to go all the way, or kiss him," Noah deadpanned, shrugging.

Rex forced a bland laugh.

"Are you serious? You'd rather _suck_ off someone you hate than to share a kiss? Isn't that… a little backward?"

Noah made a face.

"Well, I know it sounds weird, but that's how it is for me. Kisses are… different."

Rex remembered that Noah refused to kiss the trader back at the club…. But so very wantingly kissed him just the night before. Rex felt a little odd, funny feeling pooling at his chest and travelling up and down his throat. Rex swallowed hard.

His brain was instantly teeming with questions.

"How about the kissing booth? You were cool with that," he started with that.

Noah rolled his eyes again.

"Only because I was forced to, by my entire class."

"Oh, I didn't know that," Rex was stumped and fell silent for a few seconds, mulling over this newfound fact and getting more confused because of it.

"Then what about me? You've kissed me –" Rex made a show of counting off his fingers, "–four, not, five times."

Noah flushed.

"Because you were being annoying! Besides, weren't you the one who kissed me first?"

Rex felt a smile tugging at his lips, finding it amusing. Minus the fact that Rex kissed him first out of spite for some stupid competition, Noah initiated the later five kisses, and it wasn't because of a contest.

"Seriously, Noah, why did you kiss me?"

Rex remembered them well enough and pointedly made an effort not to think too much about it. Once was when Noah was trying to comfort him, twice were deterrents to stop Rex from irritating him, the forth could be counted as a joke. And the most recent one- the one last night – could be chalked up as a comforting kiss.

Noah took a huge breath of air, looking caught and turned away to walk off. But Rex held onto his wrist, holding him back.

"Look at me Noah, tell me, why were you okay with kissing me?"

Noah opened and closed his mouth for a few times, as if he couldn't decide what to say. Then he finally replied, saying, "Because you're special. I mean, it doesn't feel gross to kiss you."

For some reason, Rex beamed on hearing that. He wasn't into guys, so he should probably be against kissing another guy, or feel some degree of aversion to it. But because it was Noah, Rex felt it was alright –comfortable even, like it was the most natural thing.

They were buddies, Rex reasoned inwardly –have been through a lot of shit together, perhaps more than the average pair of male buddies. So needless to say, they'd share a level of friendship and closeness that isn't typical for two guy best friends.

Plus, it really, really wasn't fair that other guys got to kiss Noah and Rex didn't. Rex was _his_ best friend. He has every right to doing _everything_ with Noah.

So thinking along that line, Rex found himself another reason for lip contact. He happily drew Noah closer to him, and bubbly admitted, "Cool, it's the same for me too. It really doesn't feel gross to kiss you either."

Then, ignoring the fact that they were still out in the open with people still in sight, Rex leaned in and gave Noah a quick peck on the lips.

Noah tensed and gasped in surprise after Rex pulled away and rested his forehead on his. Rex felt Noah staring deeply into his eyes as if he was searching for something.

"What are you doing, Rex?" Noah was breathless, speaking so softly it was like a whisper.

Rex cocked a brow and smirked.

"I don't know, but uh, reaffirming our friendship, I guess?"

Noah paused a few seconds, face unreadable, then he suddenly cracked up, pulling away, relaxing immediately.

"You seriously have a strange way of showing that, you know?"

"I guess, but don't forget, I was raised by _abnormal_ 'parents.'"

Noah didn't miss the joke.

"By that, you're referring to Doctor Holiday and Six?"

"Exactly!"

"Then what about White Knight?"

"Duh, grouchy old grandpa!" Rex replied and they both cracked up.

Noah continued counting off with his fingers in between his laughter.

"Wait there's more – Bobo's your pesky older brother –"

"No, no, that can't work. Caesar's already my older brother," Rex interrupted.

"Ahhh, but Caesar's the weird one. Bobo's the annoying one."

"Right, good point! Okay please continue."

"Okay, who's next? Hutton, your unwed uncle from hell, Calan your other uncle, Dr. Rhodes your sweet older sister…."

* * *

Author's Comments:

Rex + Noah's relationship level up! 3

Hehe, sorry, I hope the way that I've finished this chapter isn't too disappointing. If anyone was hoping for a quick romp the moment Noah confesses to be gay, well, please be patient with me.

As I really want to slowly build to the romance I'm hoping for. That's why my approach is Best Friends to Bromance to Lovers. Lol.


	15. Genius Distractions

A little something in between to lighten things up ~ I like Bobo a lot so I tried to include him more here.

But I suck at humor, so hopefully this is a fun chpt to read. Feedback pls~ =v=

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Genius Distractions**

(Bobo ropes Rex in for his grand schemes.)

* * *

Rex did not like this one bit. But really, he should have seen this coming.

A return to Providence walls was a return to the constant reminder of the nanites war that was going on.

He had barely stepped into Providence, back from his weekend stay at Noah's place, when Holiday radioed him to come up to the lab immediately.

So now he was stuck with playing roulette with probably four hundred test tubes of blood all lined up neatly on a trolley-shelf.

"Alright, next – " Holiday repeated the umpteen for over two hours.

Her assistants then removed the conductive closed phial that was wedged in-between two conductive nodes in a small set up, and replaced it with a new specimen from which they transferred from another of the test tube.

A microscopic high-tech camcorder was attached overhead to record the nanite-level visuals as Rex supplied his charges from one end of the set-up. He sagged into his chair, keeping one finger on a conducting value through which he connected his electric current to either activate, or deactivate the nanites in the blood samples, on Holiday's command.

It looks like the team was trying out Caesar's method of experiments, except that they were using Rex directly, rather feeding it with an external electromagnetic signal. When he had pointed it out to Holiday earlier, she stated that Caesar requested they engaged him, to see if there were any differences from his end, since he had to stimulate his specimens without Rex.

There was no doubt the blood samples were from the fifty-odd EVO cows. For the additional count, Rex has no desire to know. He felt a little guilty that he was disinterested in the scientists' work when it was important. But man, he was bored out of his wits.

He stared blankly at the giant computer screen ahead that streamed the live footage of the nanite activities as the experiments were carried out. At first, it was interesting to see how these little buddies behave. They looked like tiny little robot parts, harmless, like a kid's construction toy –who knew they had such a huge impact on their host's bodies?

But after a long while, the images started to blur into each other as Rex lost focus. Even so, seeing Holiday's and her team's hardworking, serious face stopped him from whining.

"Activate again."

"Huh?" Rex gave Holiday a blank look as her assistants have not replaced the blood sample with a new one.

"Just activate again," Holiday instructed, eyes glued to the screen, arms folded across her chest, tapping her index on an elbow impatiently.

Rex did so without question and observed her tapping increase.

"Dr. Holiday," Rhodes gave her a pointed look, as if looking for confirmation on something.

Murmurs rose from the rest of her team, seeing something that Rex did not.

Holiday gave a heavy sigh and massaged between her brows.

"Let's take fifteen."

The break should be a long awaited and welcoming one for Rex. But seeing Holiday's irate demeanor made him even more restless.

"Uh, so is there something about that latest sample?" Rex gingerly asked, coming up to Holiday who retreated to the nearest chair.

An assistant handed her a mug of coffee and clipboards bursting at the hinges with papers.

Rex felt sorry that even a short break was not rest time for the Head of Providence's Science department.

Holiday took a sip before answering, eyeing him from the rim of the mug.

"It's one of the EVO traffickers. His nanite reaction differed much more than usual."

Rex felt his throat running dry, sensing bad news.

"And...? Is he like the EVO cows?"

Holiday gave a pointed look.

"Not sure yet. We'll need you to cure them first, then wait a couple of weeks to be sure."

"Right," Rex nodded his head woodenly then continued, "In the meantime, is it okay if I take a longer break, doc? Say... thirty minutes?"

"Actually I need a longer break too," Holiday gave him a weak smile, "Make that an hour."

* * *

Rex was exhausted. It looks menial, but a whole afternoon of supplying small bouts of current was draining.

He was only too happy to crash in his bed, but became assaulted by the overwhelming smell of animal.

"Eww, why does my bed smell of you?" Rex pointedly accused Bobo, giving him a critical eye.

"That's because I baptized it," Bobo declared in a smug tone, eyes not leaving his game.

"Awww, you missed me, Monkey?"

"U kiddin'? You should stay out more often. You're an overgrown baby. Move out so I can have the whole room to myself," Bobo retorted in his typical heartless manner.

But Rex knows better and chuckled to himself.

"Ya right, how can you live without your gaming buddy?"

Bobo grunted.

"Then what are you doing in bed? Get your ass down here."

Rex laughed, knowing he had got his friend.

"Later, I need a nap first. Dead tired," Rex announced and settled back to bed. The smell didn't really bother him anyway. He had been long been accustomed to Bobo's smell.

Bobo gave a snort of disapproval.

"Sleep is for wimps."

"I'll show you who's a wimp when I trash you later – Hey – what the? Bobo!" Rex yelled and shot straight up as after rolling around, he discovered Bobo's fur was everywhere. "Are you a yeti? You've shedded everywhere!"

Bobo gave a raucous laugh.

"I told you, I baptized it."

* * *

Rex found himself wandering the white corridors aimlessly, and hadn't even realized that he ended up in the lab till he saw Caesar's face in the wide screen.

Rex decided to hang around as Caesar and Providence Science team continued their video conference. They were discussing their findings about the evolved nanites, comparing notes and drawing up theories.

Much of it sounded like mambo jumbo to Rex, but in between the complex scientific terms they used, Rex caught afew points.

The serum used in the nanite patches contained different nanite components from the Cows and the REAS. Hence, the scientists deliberated if it was a different group behind this, or the same mastermind who was simultaneously experimenting with different concoctions.

Rex felt heavier as the meeting wore on, which ended with Caesar announcing he would pop in for new experiments and samples.

"Rex," Holiday looked surprised to see him, only just noticing that Rex was there when the screen blacked out. "Is there anything you need?"

Rex shrugged.

"Oh uh... I don't know, just exploring the place."

Holiday quirked a worried frown.

"Rex, you've been looking listless lately. Are you sure you're ok?"

"Of course I'm fine. Why would I not be?"

Despite saying that, he pouted.

"Rex," Holiday persisted.

"Well, actually, Bobo kicked me out."

Her brows shot up.

"Well that's surprising. Did you guys quarrel?"

"No. Just that he said I made a bad gaming opponent recently. Said my soul was not in it."

Holiday actually gave a bark of laughter and tapped his shoulder with the back of her knuckle.

"Congratulations! It means you have graduated from being an overgrown kid! I'm proud of you, Rex!"

Rex got her joke, but could only give a weak laugh.

"So anyway, there's no changes in those three traffickers, right?" Rex asked, changing the topic.

Spikey and Clay EVO were gone cases – far too many rouge nanites for Rex to cure. Luckily, it was easy enough for Rex to cure the other three humanoid ones.

"No Rex – you'll be the first to know if they relapsed. So take it easy and stop worrying about it." Holiday assured.

"Thanks doc," Rex brightened a bit, but still couldn't completely erase the unease lodged at the pit of his stomach. Since discovering the EVO cows, Rex found himself wishing for more action.

Anything to distract him from the relapse issue. But on weeks like this where there were no incidents, Rex found he has plenty of time to worry about bothersome things.

Like worrying about whether the three guys he cured early in the week would relapse.

Rex retreated to his room, tired of watching the scientists puzzle over the nanite thing. He was going to crack his skull trying to keep up.

When the door slid open, he was surprised to find a couple of providence soldiers in the room with Bobo. One was playing against him whilst the other four were crowded around the couch, either cheering for Bobo or their colleague.

"What is this, Bobo? A mutiny?"

The other guys were up in a flash, looking sheepish and awkward.

"Hey, don't blame me. You should have gone back to Noah's to get the soul that you have left behind."

"That's cruel monkey," Rex gave an exaggerated pained look, even though he honestly didn't mind the other guys on his console.

Besides, Bobo was right –Rex has been too plagued with anxiety about whether the three traffickers would relapse that he hasn't been able to focus on doing anything else. Obviously, Bobo could tell, so he stopped pestering Rex to game with him.

"Uh, sorry Rex," one them scratched the back of his neck, "It's just we were on break and Bobo invited us... so..."

"Oh hey, don't fret about it," Rex quickly waved his hands in front of him, "I was just acting, you know me. Just carry on guys."

The other guys relaxed immediately.

"Besides, I'm actually kinda tired so I'm gonna laze around in bed."

Bobo gave a snort. "Wimp."

Rex stuck his tongue out before climbing into his bed that was on the lower bunk. He got out his phone and started scrolling through the net aimlessly, looking at random videos.

"So, what bad news did you hear from the lab?" Bobo suddenly asked not long later.

Rex was surprised Bobo didn't pay a hundred percent attention on his game. So he surmised he must have looked gloomy enough to warrant Bobo's rare concern.

"Just the same one. You know, nanites are complicated."

Bobo only grunted, attention full on the game again.

"Luckily, Caesar is coming over again. Hopefully he has a more solid answer for the crazy shit happening recently."

Feeling a shadow suddenly loom at his side, Rex looked up and found Bobo standing next to him. He looked up at his EVO friend with questioning eyes.

"When?" Bobo asked.

"Soon, but I don't know exactly when."

Silence and heavy breathing followed for a few seconds. For the first time ever, Bobo wore the most serious expression Rex had ever seen.

"Alright guys, sorry for cutting it short but playtime is over," Bobo suddenly declared, whirling around to shoo the guys off, "I have work to do."

They protested mildly and looked vastly disappointed as they were forced to leave.

"Bobo? What got into your pants?" Rex was in disbelief.

Bobo never, ever, stopped in the middle of a game unless it was mission time. Yet here he had just chased off his new gaming buddies for 'work'.

As soon as Bobo kicked the last guy out and shut the door, he turned to meet Rex's eyes with the most solemn gaze Rex has seen yet.

"And you, Igor, time to stop moping and start getting to work too."

"Hah?" Rex gave Bobo a blank stare and pointed at himself, slowly sitting up.

"I'm Igor? But you're the ugly one."

Bobo didn't take offence with. He merely beckoned with one finger whilst the other was planted on his hip, assuming a cocky stance.

"But I'm smarter than you. So quiting wasting time. I have grand plans," Bobo announced ominously.

"Why does that sound like something I should be worried about?"

It was anyone's guess Bobo was up to his no-good, disastrous pranks again. Small pranks were fine, but the bigger the prank, the harder the shit hits the fan.

"Don't worry Mr Mopey, just take it as a special recreation course."

Then Bobo was back to Rex's side and pulling him out of bed. Rex felt the inexplicable need to pull back, alarm bells going off in his head.

"C'mon, you spineless, disloyal friend," Bobo persuaded in an uncharacteristic, serious tone, "after all those times I've helped you. Are you going to ditch me on the fly?"

"I don't even know what you want me to do!" Rex protested, still fighting against Bobo's pull in this tug-of-war with Rex's arm.

"You will aid me in my revenge against Caesar!"

"Hah? Revenge?" Rex swore Bobo must have got his screws loose. "For what?"

Bobo relinquishes Rex's arm whilst he quickly recounts how Caesar delivered him an IQ test and gave him a lesser score than what he deserved.

"Are you serious? That's your beef with him?" Rex was incredulous that Bobo would pick a fight with just that reason. Still, it shouldn't surprise him that much either as Bobo could be as prideful as he could be nonchalant.

Whatever it was, Rex has to stop Bobo of this foolishness. Bobo may be prank master, but his brother was pure genius – the top nanite scientist in the world!

"That's the dumbest reason ever! And plus, how do you expect me to betray my own brother?"

Bobo glared at him.

"Am I not your kin? We are a family of primates and pranksters. Haven't we been through thick and thin?" Bobo continued his mad ramble, "Pranked every sorry-sob and ninny deserving of wiping our winning tears off the floor with their pathetic asses. I'm aghast you have so little pride in ensuring the longevity of our spirited way of life."

Rex stuttered abit, at loss for words against Bobo's inarguable tirade. Then he sighed heavily, combing his hands through his hair, and tried another angle.

"Yea, well, but I thought we know the following people in Providence should not be touched –ever!" Rex freaked, "Like Six, White knight, Holiday, her Science department, Six, Captain Calan, Six, Hutton, and wait, did I mention, Six? –" Rex counted off on his fingers.

" –And of course, my brother is lumped in together as Holiday's Science team, right?"

"Hah!" Bobo gave a I-could-care-less grunt. "That lesser being who pretends to be so smart, needs to be kicked off his high horse. I'm a highly evolved primate, yet he dares undermine my IQ with his pathetic paper test. He will have to pay."

Rex rolled his eyes.

"No, you are an Exponentially Variegated Organism. I'm the highly evolved primate."

A glint suddenly came to Bobo's eyes.

"Should I broadcast your wimpy groans shouting Noah's name in your wet dream on Providence main control? You know, I'd recorded three minutes of evidence."

Rex paled, shut his mouth indefinitely and shook his head furiously.

"Good," Bobo gave an evil, satisfied grin, "Now minion, just do as I say…"

* * *

Bobo could not keep cackling beside a jumpy and jittery Rex.

"Ho ho ho! I can't wait for the moment Caesar touch lands on Providence base. For sure, he'll be surprised!"

Rex combed his cropped hair non-stop with his fingers, tugging at it nervously in a fruitless bid to calm his nerves of trepidation. He was going to be bald at the end of the day.

Who cares. He was going to die that very night anyway.

"Seriously, Bobo, hate to say it, but you've reached a new low," Rex criticized stiffly as he stood by the side of the motor garage, watching Caesar's pod inch closer to Providence landing pad.

Bobo smirked, obviously taking it as a compliment.

"Thank you. It's called self-improvement."

Rex could only stare in dread as he counted down the seconds to his death.

 _I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die._

Then shit blew up in an explosion of blinding blues and whites dancing in and over circled loops of electric currents that entrapped the entire pod inside an electrical ball. The air hummed against Rex's skin with dangerous energy, and crackled thunderously as if thunderclouds have descended, so loud that it seemed to split Rex's eardrums. The decibel quickly rose to deafening heights, shaking his skull, as the turrets lined along the perimeter of the landing pad fired off Bobo's and Rex's handiwork. Replacing the ballistics with fireworks, all twelve launched above the pod and exploded into the sky with noisy booms, raining giant, glittering letters across the clouds that read 'I'm too stupid to see where I land - Caesar'.

Shouts quickly added to the madness as Providence staff raced out by the dozens for a better view of the spectacle.

Rex had a forewarning that he should make his getaway quickly, but really, who was he kidding? Providence could track his biometrics anywhere.

Bobo didn't seem concerned at all. Instead, he was laughing hysterically, clicking away with his camera like it was the 4th of July.

"A moment to commemorate," Bobo commented proudly to himself.

"Commemorate what?" Rex shouted hysterically, "Our funeral?"

"Indeed."

Rex froze, heart stopping. Even against the thunderous explosive sounds of their handiwork, Rex could make out the cold voice of the man he was most afraid of pissing off.

"Six," Rex's lower lip trembled when he turned round to meet his reaper.

White Knight was outraged. Six was livid. Holiday was extremely disappointed. Rylander was cross and Meechum was fuming.

Caesar on the other hand, was surprisingly unruffled.

The electrical currents caging the pod had earlier, died off after several minutes, having drained all the battery from the self-made devices that Bobo and him had implanted around the landing pad. When it appeared safe to approach, Six marched Rex and Bobo right up to the pod at the same moment that Caesar and his team exited the hatch.

By that time, Holiday and White Knight had followed after them, rebuking them for their dangerous shenanigan. Meechum joined in the reproach, multiple veins popping on his head. In contrast to the rest who complained that someone could have died, Caesar was calm, rubbing his chin quietly, looking thoughtful.

Rex stammered a timid apology before Six pushed his and Bobo's head down low such that he had to bow.

"Dr. Salazar, please accept these culprits as yours to punish as you see fit," Six offered.

"Yes… it's regrettable, but it seems I wasn't able to properly teach your brother. I'm afraid I've failed in his upbringing," Holiday added and made a small bow of apology next to them.

"No, the fault is all mine," Six refuted and bowed even lower than Holiday, "I hadn't been strict enough."

"Enough! The both of you are my finest staff!" White Knight declared, "It's this monkey that's the bad influence!"

Normally, Rex would have objected, but he dared not make a peep in this situation.

"Dr. Salazar!" Rhodes called out breathlessly, interrupting the scolding-fest, running over and coming up behind the group, "My goodness I don't know how all that happened, but are you alright?"

"How can we be alright after suffering a near death experience?" Meechum complained, "I nearly had a heart attack with all that explosion and electric lights swimming over our window – saw my life flash before my eyes!"

"That's right, I was shocked and thought we were somehow being attacked. I worried if we were gonna be transported to some other dimension," Rylander grimly recounted.

"My apologies again, that's why, please have your say in a suitable punishment for the two of them. For any damages to the pod, please feel free to take it out on his expense," Six offered again.

"Actually, if I may add in a word or so, I'm actually impressed!" Caesar finally spoke up.

All heads turned to him, staring at him like he was speaking in alien tongues. Rex strained against Six's palms, staring at Caesar from the top of his eyes.

"You've carried out a highly dangerous exercise without causing any bodily harm!" Caesar continued to exclaim in the most excited of tones, "of course, the electromagnetic field earlier had damaged our flight controls and disrupted many functions, likely also short fused our supporting generator, but at least these can all be repaired or replaced."

Caesar clapped the both of them on their backs.

"But from the looks of it, you've shown excellent understanding of aerial electro-magnetic conductivity!"

Rex could barely believe what Caesar was saying. Instead of pulling his ears off, Caesar was actually, commending them? Searching his face, it was true that Rex couldn't find a trace of disapproval or anger anywhere.

Rex couldn't believe his good luck!

Bobo, on the other hand, took this as a sign to push it.

"Heh, not just that – I'm an expert at pyrotechnics too."

He dared to pull out his camera and showed Caesar the playback before Rex could stop him.

Caesar was quiet for a few seconds before he burst out laughing.

"Amazing! Now that's what I call a proper 'Welcome!'" Caesar slapped his own thigh, seemingly finding the humor even if he was supposedly the butt of the joke in this. "You're geniuses – the both of you!"

Bobo beamed, his face split into a giant grin.

* * *

Despite things turning out unexpectedly well, Rex remained cautiously skeptical since they were still not yet left off the hook.

Rex and Bobo were still charged with helping to repair the pod or whatever penance that Caesar required, and Six had made it clear that he'd have their heads if they dared to run off.

Caesar remained upbeat as he led the two of them into the pod and left them standing around for a few minutes as he and his team assessed the damages. Rex had a suspicious foreboding on Caesar's behavior, though frankly, till date, he has to admit he has difficulty predicting his brother's erratic and eccentric behavior.

Meechum and Rylander were more up to expected, looking upset over this and that. Meechum was especially aghast and furious, and continued to reproach Rex and Bobo for giving him the 'hell of his life'. He congratulated them for earning a spot on his hate list next to Van Kleiss and the Consortium.

Rex didn't retort a peep, growing smaller and more miserable every second since he knew he deserved it. His bastard friend by contrast, became happier with every criticism.

After about half an hour of assessment, Caesar nodded to Rex and Bobo and beckoned them to follow him. They passed through several small rooms – more like compartments really, each measuring three to four feet – before Caesar opened a hatch on the floor. He spread his palms and feet on both sides of the ladder, bracing them, then slid down like a seasoned pro.

Rex hesitated following after, over thinking if that was where hell would greet him.

"Come down," Caesar's voice floated up.

Rex exchanged looks with Bobo before going down.

They landed in a much bigger room but with a shorter roof, just inches shy of touching the top of Rex's hair. It was roughly six feet long, with half the room taken up by what looked like a generator encased in glass. Massive, thick coils of wire plugged into the metal platform that the generator sits on, spilled all over the floor like giant, lumbering snakes.

Caesar was fiddling with some mechanical lock of some sort on the cylindrical vault that housed the generator.

Once done, he carefully swung the door opened and waved Rex over.

"Okay, Mijo, I need you to step right in."

Rex gave him a critical gaze.

"To be electrocuted?"

Caesar gave a bark of laughter and slapped his shoulder in a good-natured manner.

"Don't be silly, of course not! We need some power going, otherwise, we wouldn't be able to do some of our repairs properly."

"Ah, I see, so you need my help powering the Pod," Rex relaxed a little, stepped into the glass vault and was crammed against the generator. Still, it wasn't too bad – at least there was still space to stand. And being a human battery was not so bad. He could do it. He'd plenty of electrical charge to spare.

Caesar nodded.

"And possibly recharge the generator while you are at it. Be careful though, it short-circuited earlier, so you may have to fix the internal wirings or you'll be fried to a crisps."

Rex took a sharp breath. Right, how could he forget? His prank caused the generator to malfunction in the first place. Conceding to his punishment, he nodded stiffly, lips drawn tight against his face.

"Thanks for the reminder."

Caesar smiled. "Oh no problem at all!"

He shut the glass door and much to Rex's bewilderment, started locking it. Panic started to swell up from within Rex but he forced it back down. Rex swallowed a deep breath.

 _It shouldn't be too hard,_ he chanted to himself. Certainly he wasn't trained like an electrical engineer, but he shouldn't have to – he could probably connect with the circuits and feel around to fix the points that are broken. It could be challenging, but wouldn't be impossible.

If it was, Caesar wouldn't have put him through it, so there was no reason to be paranoid. But as soon as Caesar went away, with Bobo at his heels, he reappeared again within a minute with some kind of small apparatus in tow.

Rex grew confused watching him unlock the glass vault. When Caesar opened the door, he gave a sheepish smile and handed Rex a respiratory device attached to a small oxygen tank that was supposed to be worn over the shoulders.

"Sorry, Mijo, I nearly forgot about your oxygen mask."

Rex stared at it a few seconds before it clicked.

"Oh, this vault is a vaccum?" Rex asked, feeling his blood run cold on the thought that his brother very nearly left him to suffocate within and die.

Bobo was obviously enjoying Rex's frightened deliberations as he sniggered on the sidelines.

Rex ignored his flurry friend and simply took the apparatus. He gingerly fitted the mouthpiece over his nose and mouth while Caesar slung the tank over his shoulder.

"Yes, because we require the generator to be in consistent pressure so this vault is actually a special containment unit."

Rex nodded as he listened. So that explained the need for the lock, since it needs to be sealed tight.

"Oh, and do try to be quick. The tank only lasts for two hours. And I'm only left with one."

This time, Rex panicked.

"What? But didn't you need me to power the Pod throughout the repairs? I overheard Meechum saying how it could take days to complete it!"

Caesar laughed, flicking his hands back and forth over his face.

"Nonsense, you know how he likes to exaggerate. It will only take six hours tops," Caesar chirped without a care before shutting the door.

Rex balled his eyes at Caesar's retreating back. His jaw would have hit the floor too if he could unhinge it.

* * *

"I swear! He's evil incarnate!" Rex whined, chin plonked on the table in the lab.

Holiday rolled her eyes for the umpteen time.

"Scaring you, does not make him evil."

"Yea, plus, don't forget he wouldn't have punished you if you didn't pull the stunt that you did," Rhodes reminded pointedly.

Rex huffed, knowing they were right. But still, in the last week alone, he'd learnt things about his brother that if children knew, would be too frightened to sleep. It was his ever-smiling face and air-headed demeanor that mind-fucked him the most.

His brother put him through all sorts of difficult tasks with terrifying risks, but he could never tell when Caesar was serious or just bluffing. Caesar's smiling face never cracked, not even once!

"Alright fine, he ain't evil, but he sure acts a helluva lot like one," Rex complained, "He should win an Oscar. I'll nominate him."

Holiday shakes her head and grins.

"And you only now just realized that? You should've known about his acting skills from when *he pretended to work under Black Knight. Or from even before that - no one could tell what his real motives were, right up until the worldwide cure."

Rex sighed heavily.

"No… guess I never saw that."

"By the way, how's Bobo doing? I don't think we've seen him for a week. What kind of punishment do you think he's doing?" Rhodes suddenly pondered aloud.

As if on cue, the doors slid open, but only to reveal a Bobo that was in a form of the highest ridiculousness.

Everyone in the lab gaped. Rhodes gave a semi-scream of shock. Someone dropped their drink, another fell backwards from their chair.

Rex… just stared at the wholly, naked ape, completely naked under his clothes – like a mole rat – except for the fur on his face. Man, did he looked ridiculous and silly, absurdly so, especially since he kept scratching at himself like fleas have moved in with him.

His skin was dusty pink and spotted and wrinkled like a withered peach, with big, glaring red bumps scattered all over as if he had slept in a beehive. Without his fur as added volume, his proportions looked askew – long arms too thin and gangly against an oversized, protruding belly. By all standards, an ogre would have looked more handsome.

Without anyone asking, Bobo explained first.

"Had to burn and shave off my hair to rid of the million leeches."

Rex burst into laughter at that point, rocking back and forth on his chair so raucously that he fell back. Rex paused for a huge intake of breath as he righted himself, then continued his hysteria.

Bobo glared at Rex as he stomped into the room.

"But why would you need to enter a swamp full of leeches?" Rhodes asked in a horrified voice. Obviously, she didn't find the same humor as Rex did.

Bobo wrinkled his nose.

"That's all that you need to know," he spat somewhat bitterly.

But it was anyone's guess who made Bobo run that sick errand. Caesar probably sent him off to get some bio-organic material for the ship or some specimen or another. It was no wonder that all through the week, Rex didn't even see Bobo's shadow within the Pod.

"Now, I'm here for my antibiotics so if you're done watching this freak show, I'd appreciate if you take a look at me before I die."

Holiday tried to stifle her laugh and forced on a serious face.

"Antibiotics? What for?"

"Lady, I've been bitten and stung by the worst sorts of nightmares you can imagine. I'm itching half to death and have also suffered from their poison more than my ass can take."

"Sounds serious, let's take a look then," Holiday went into professional mode, and at the flick of her fingers, several of her scientists rushed to attend to Bobo. They helped him to get on the bed and quickly hooked him up to scanners and IV drips.

In the gravity of Bobo's misery, Rex managed to rein in his laughter, shedding concern for his buddy when he noticed that Bobo indeed looked worse for wear.

Holiday was also a face full of concern, shaking her head as she did his checkup.

"This really wasn't your week, was it?" She pointed out and sighed, looking sorry for him.

"Don't worry, we'll get you better in no time," Rhodes assured Bobo, patting his arm.

Bobo only grunted, face squelched up in misery more so for the damage to his pride than his body.

"You know, I hope you've learnt an important lesson from this," Holiday added, raising a brow.

Bobo only grunted again in reply, so Rex answered for him.

"Yep – never mess with a sadistic genius like Caesar."

Then he continued laughing his head off.

* * *

"Where's Bobo?" Rex looked around the lab.

Holiday and Rhodes gave him questioning looks.

"He wasn't in the sick bay."

"That's because he's just discharged, so you probably just missed him. He's likely already back in your room."

"Cool! Thanks doc!"

Rex was just about exiting the door when Holiday called him.

"Yea doc?"

"Um," she began slowly, "Actually we have some more testing to do, and we need your help, not today, but probably over the next few days."

"Sure," Rex chirped, "Anything else?"

Holiday looked slightly surprised.

"Are you sure you're okay to go with it?"

Rex gave her a thumbs up.

She heaved a small sigh of relief and smiled.

"Good. I'm glad you're doing better. I know how it gets you down, so I try not to involve you in our studies, but somehow, you're always necessary."

Rex waggled a brow.

"Come now, Holiday, don't make it out like I was such a zombie about this before."

When Holiday mirrored his brows, Rex was taken back.

"What? You mean really? Hmmm, I hadn't realized," he paused abit, deep in thoughts, before continuing, "But I'm totally cool now. It hadn't even crossed my mind recently – the whole nanite problem."

Then he suddenly realized that carrying out their big stunt and paying for his penance actually took his mind off such depressing matters. Even though he was miserable being tortured by Caesar, oddly enough, he felt a load lifted off him.

It was coincidence, of course, but he mused to himself that their prank couldn't have been done at better timing. And it was the perfect thing to distract Rex. He wondered if this thought ever briefly crossed Bobo's mind when he roped him in for their dumb shenanigan.

Either way, Rex owed it to his trusty monkey for putting him on better spirits. Now, Rex knows what he has to do to properly thank his monkey – ten rounds of Killer Kong VS Killer Shark.

* * *

Hope this tickled your funny bones… I really tried. *v*

Footnotes:

*"he pretended to work under Black Knight. Or from even before that - no one could tell what his real motives were, right up until the worldwide cure." – this links to the original cartoon… so yea, if you watched it you'll know. =D


	16. Graduation

**Chapter 16: Graduation**

(Autumn. Rex attends Noah's graduation, where an old nemesis returns for vengeance)

* * *

"Woah, Mrs. Nixon, if you run out of tissues, you can borrow my sleeve," Rex joked.

Noah's mom was sniffling and teary eyed while they watched Noah up in front, queuing for his turn to get on stage. They were seated in a large auditorium, with other proud families watching the graduates receive their degrees.

Rex thought it didn't match her sharp business suit in ice-cold grey and platinum blonde hair in a bun so neat it were as if she applied a layer of glue all over so it stuck.

Mrs. Nixon laughed in between her sniffles.

"Oh I've got that covered, Rex –I think I stuffed twenty packets into my bag before I headed out."

Rex cracked up.

Then, inner ears drumming with the familiar sensation of high speed air molecules rushing towards them through the tall, opened windows, Rex shoot himself fifteen feet into the air, legs extending out from where he stood.

He held his arms in a defensive pose in front of him and beamed out a concave energy shield that stretched across the entire auditorium to block the incoming sound wave.

The audience erupted into murmurs and gasps, stunned at his apparent madness, before they were swallowed by the sound of six window panels shattering inwards from a powerful blast.

Rex grunted, straining against the force that came at him like a high-speed train, knocking his body to the other wall. Spikes under his boots kept him rooted to his spot and he rebounded back quickly, taking a giant stride towards the window.

"Get out, everyone! Now!" Rex commanded before he ducked out the window, and didn't have to say it twice. People were up on their feet in panic, scrambling in mad chaos for the exit.

Out from the crowded confines of the auditorium, Rex took a running leap and shot out whips from both arms, extending them towards the hateful sight who chose to show up today, of all days.

Blaster Prince was never caught –that slippery guy managed to escape right after the chaotic battle at the oil rig. From what he had heard from Six, Providence Intel Officers were having trouble trying to track him down after that, so it was probably good that he turned up at Rex's door.

But of all the bloody days, the fiend picked today to show up. Rex was fucking pissed. He was going to make Blaster Prince feel sorry for ruining Noah's graduation ceremony. They have yet to catch Noah on camera upon receiving his certification from the school's High Chancellor –the highlight that Rex had been anticipating for over three years.

Perhaps it was because Rex never had the opportunity to have a normal life –go to school like a regular teen, and enjoy college life. Hanging out with Noah at his school and his dorm was the closest thing that Rex had to living the moment, and having Noah finish his education was almost like fulfilling the dream that Rex could never have, on Rex's behalf.

It meant a lot to Rex that Noah finally graduated –he was damned happy and proud. So it was hell to have the glorious moment ruined, like having a nuclear bomb rudely dropping in on his birthday.

Blaster Prince unleashed another blast that diced Rex's whips into multiple pieces, but Rex was quick to leap a few yards off to the side to avoid being hit. Rex cursed inwardly, seeing that the other had a new suit again, in royal purples lined with black trims.

Thankfully, his weapons seemed to be less powerful that their last battle at the oil rig.

"I see you got a new suit –how many banks did you rob to get it? And who's your client this time? A rival college principal?" Rex raised his voice so that it could be carried across the quadrangle.

Blaster Prince gave a manic laugh.

"This one is personal. Coincidently, I discovered that I share a common enemy with Modifier. It's a heavy price, but we've made a trade –a free suit while I put you out, permanently," the fiend announced and proceeded to blast him again.

Rex sprinted in leaps and bounds on his elongated, nanite legs, circling Blaster Prince, closing in till he was close enough to deliver a kick to Blaster Prince's side. Blaster Prince did not notice in time, and was struck, driven to the ground, causing him to roar aloud in pain.

Rex quickly surveyed the surroundings while Blaster Prince was down, cursing under his breath at the slash marks marring all the surrounding college blocks. He was going to have to take the fight down further.

But before that, he raised one foot high up in the air and brought it down towards the fiend, who recovered in time to unleash a wave that hacked Rex's nanite leg into bits.

Rex yelped and fell backward, unbalanced as his nanite-constructed leg was sliced into hundreds of pieces like onions on a chopping board.

Lying flat on the floor, momentarily disorientated, Rex shook his head lightly and recovered to find Blaster Prince hovering a few yards in the air above him, aiming his oblong shaped blasters that sat atop his shoulders, at him.

"Oh fuck."

Rex lamented then brought his arms to his head and beamed out his force field to intercept the cutting blast that raced towards him. Instinct kicked in –or rather, more like his nanite defense mechanisms, which somehow calculated the external air molecules pressure rushing towards him and concluded that his energy shield was not enough to block the energy of the sound wave coming in at such close range.

In a split second, his nanites entombed him in sheets of metal wrappings like a mummy, right before his energy shield dissipated like a leaf against the hurricane. Still, the tremendous force rocked Rex's entire form, pressing in from above with such intense pressure that Rex felt like a ten-ton machine was sitting atop him. Rex could hear the concrete crack under him as he sunk inches into the ground.

Then he heard the faint cries of his name, the sound muffled by the metal shield over his ears. Rex thought it came from the communicator in his ear – it could be that Providence had picked up on his spiked active nanites count and was checking in. But he couldn't reply, mouth being tightly bound with the metal shield.

Suddenly, Blasted Prince stopped attacking Rex, who felt relived for the respite, feeling loads coming off his chest, allowing him to breathe normally.

"You! Blonde! I found you, finally I can exact my revenge –you were the one who fired the ion destabilizer launcher, damaging my previous suit. That is going to cost you dearly!"

Blaster Prince's enraged shouts could be clearly discerned by Rex, who panicked.

 _Noah!_

Rex balled his eyes at Noah who had removed his graduation robe, standing about fifty yards away.

Rex was up that instant, metal wrappings retreating inwards into his form, returning his full mobility. Rex zipped on rockets beneath his feet and caught Noah under his knees before the slashing wave got him.

"Rex!" Noah exclaimed breathlessly, tightening his arms around Rex's neck, staring at him with relieved eyes, "You're alright! I thought you've been diced like carrots!"

"Hey, don't go about imagining my death, okay?" Rex chided, "And why are you still here? You could have gotten yourself killed."

"I was worried!" Noah protested and pulled himself upwards so that he sat higher within Rex's arms, head above Rex's shoulders, facing the opposite direction, "Besides, I might be able to help."

"Well, maybe not this time, man, that manic is a tough one," Rex reluctantly admittedly, zipping in a zig zag line to avoid the blasts that barely brushed their sides, leaving long lines of glaring cuts across the ground.

Rex tried to report in to Six to inform him what was happening, but a static noise surfaced in reply.

"Damn it! He's spoiled them again," Rex cursed aloud, "Blast these lousy communicators! Providence really gotta get better upgrades!"

"Less talk! More speed!" Noah urged, patting the back of Rex's shoulders in indication of which side was Blaster Prince's slashing wave coming in from. The signaling was great help, as Rex couldn't face the manic properly while cradling Noah like a baby.

"I'm gonna drop you off," Rex announced as he zipped right out the school gate, depositing Noah behind the low rise, brick fence before he zipped back into Blaster Prince's path, taunting him.

Blaster Prince gave his own retorts of rage and chased after, but as he flew past the gate, he slowed and took a double take backwards at Noah, who paled at being caught.

"Oh shit. Rex!" Noah screamed as he sprinted alongside the gate, barely two steps ahead from the slashing wave that ran a horizontal line behind him, embedding the brick wall with a barrage of cuts.

Rex whirled back around and cursed when he took in the scene, wasting no time to return to his friend.

"Pick me up, pick me up, pick up me up!"

Rex came in, inwardly thanking fate that Noah was such a fast sprinter. Noah ran right into Rex's open arms and like a sync unit, he threw his arms around Rex's neck, and wrapped his legs around Rex's body, thighs flushed tight against Rex's hips, so Rex had his arms free to fashion a large convex shield, this time fully metal instead of the usual energy field.

Rex grunted, bracing against the tornado pushing against his shield but he stood firm, encasing his feet with heavyweight metal.

"Humph! I see you made yourself a nifty upgrade, but how long can you keep protecting your friend, Rex?" Blaster Prince scorned from the other side, closing in.

"Don't you worry about that, just worry about how long you can keep up with me," Rex replied through clenched teeth as he followed suit, straining every inch of his muscles to push forward so that he and Noah were not backed up against the brick gate. He cast glances both ways, mind racing –somehow, he had to find an opening to escape so that he could bring Noah to safety.

"You know, Modifier was right, you and Noah are inseparable –"

Rex's tensed further, alarmed by his words.

"-and that's your weakness."

Right after saying that, Blaster Prince released an odd buzzing sound that seemed to screw around inside Rex's brain and pounded his head like a mechanic working to dismantle his mind from the inside.

Both Rex and Noah collapsed onto the ground, rolling around, bracing their heads in agony. The ground, the buildings, the hateful sight of Blaster Prince, morphed into and out of one another like animated clay in psychotic colors. The gloating laughs from the fiend echoed, sending tremors through them, adding to their misery.

Rex panted heavily, trying to get a grip on reality, to get up and move to defend against Blaster Prince. But god damn it! The world wouldn't stop churning in eerie shapes.

 _Get up, Rex! Get up!_

A voice inside his head screamed in urgency, heart squeezed in trepidation as Blaster Prince closed the distance and lifted Noah inches off the ground by his shirt.

Noah was helpless against the ominous, invasive sound, head rolling sideways like he has lost all strength to fight. It took a few seconds for Rex to notice that in actual fact, Noah was staring pointedly at Rex with a contorted face, and wriggling two fingers, seemingly drawing something in the air.

Rex struggled to concentrate on what Noah was trying to tell him, inwardly blocking off Blaster Prince's grating gloats. Then he got –or at least, in the abstract sense, he did, and he used every ounce of willpower within to generate a form of tuning fork with both arms, and waved it in front of himself.

The oppressing sound died off instantly, replaced by Blaster Prince's anguished screams. He released Noah and staggered backwards. It was now his turn to cradle his head and he fell to his knees, but he quickly switched off his own device and stopped writhing in agony.

Rex wasted no time, transforming his tuning forks into whips and snaking towards Blaster Prince's feet. He gave Noah a pointed look that was all his friend needed to dash some distance away before Rex transmitted a huge bolt of electricity to Blaster Prince.

Seeing the electricity crackle harmlessly over Blaster Prince's form, Rex squared his jaw in chagrin, feeling like he's been dancing to the same tune over and over again, and he was getting tired of it.

Blaster Prince bowed over backwards in an exaggerated, raucous laugh.

"Same trick, again, Rex? I thought you should know better, that my suit is well insulated against electric –"

A blast of water plummeted the fiend's face, cutting off his words before he could finish. Rex threw a look backwards to see Noah aiming a fire hose at Blaster Prince, extending all the way from inside the gate.

They shared another wordless look and Rex immediately caught on with Noah's ingenious idea –it was like back at the warehouse, when facing the sludge like EVO that suddenly evolved to a level five. Rex only hoped that doing this would also bring Blaster Prince down.

Rex released another torrent of electricity and this time, due to the wet surface, the charges magnified, rippling across Blaster Prince, sending him jolting in violent spasms and tearing an anguished scream from him.

Rex sank to his knees, exhaling deeply.

Thank god –they've taken him down.

Noah dropped the hose, hands shaking faintly.

"Guess he's not so shock resistant after all," Noah commented in a bland tone and walked towards Rex. Reaching him, Noah offered a hand, pulling Rex to his feet.

"Thanks to you, Noah. That was some quick thinking," Rex grinned and they fist bumped.

Then a loud static noise suddenly buzzed, startling the two of them.

"N-No –zzt – upgra – do-omed –zzt."

Blaster Prince's words came out broken and static since the electric circuitries were damaged.

Rex glared at Blaster Prince coldly. He strode over and gingerly lifted the other's neck, trying to find the catch so that he could remove the helmet. Once he did, Rex was nearly taken back to find the other's iris shrunk into twin pinpoints that trembled in fear.

"Na, na, na again!" Blaster Prince rasped out in a slurred voice, unable to speak properly since the suit was damaged, allowing the electric current to leak within and shock him.

"Vaven paid ma due. Modifier vill have ma neck."

Rex snorted and rolled his eyes, deciding he couldn't be bothered. He was at first, mildly worried that the electrocution was too much, so he wanted to check how bad was Blaster Prince's condition. He would probably require medical attention and would be tended to in Providence prison facility.

But at least Blaster Prince was not badly burnt or charred. His skin was red and looked a bit raw down one side of his neck, but it wasn't too bad. Besides, the fact that Blaster Prince was still conscious showed that he wasn't in complete dire, life threatening condition.

"Uh, Rex? I've received like a dozen phone calls from Six," Noah deadpanned, waving his phone.

Rex nodded at Noah and stood up, giving one last hard glare at the damn Blaster Prince.

"Well then, just send him a cheque," Rex scoffed, then used Noah's phone to give Six a call back.

"Rex, did something happen at Noah's school? We picked up on your high biometrics and since we couldn't reach you, we tapped into your tracker and we've already sent a squadron over."

"Cool, then they're just in time to pick up the trash," Rex drawled sarcastically, "Blaster Prince is de-crowned, but the graduation ceremony is ruined."

"Good, E.T.A thirty minutes. Keep an eye on him least he escapes again," Six replied in a neutral tone, seemingly not catching Rex's sarcasm, or perhaps just choosing to ignore it.

"Oh don't worry, he's not going anywhere," Rex said to himself as he hangs up then walks a few yards from the paralyzed Blaster Prince, surveying the damage caused by their battle.

The school gate was completely damaged, and the grounds were marred with unsightly cuts everywhere. Rex gave a huge sigh in frustration, at which Noah followed him in step and patted his shoulder.

"Hey man, don't fret about this, at least we've got those funds raised from the fair, and not to forget, our kissing booth, to pay for the repairs," Noah said, as if reading Rex's mind.

Rex gave a bland laugh.

"Guess you're right, but how about your school mates, you don't think anyone got hurt, do you?"

Noah shook his head.

"Don't worry, everyone's safe. The lecturers and class reps got everyone ushered to the basement shelter behind the basketball court. I gotta go tell them it's safe to come out now."

Rex nodded.

"That's good," Rex said then added on a solemn note, "But too bad your graduation is ruined."

Noah wagged a brow, cheeky smile in place.

"Are you kidding me? This is the best graduation day ever! I was about to fall asleep from the director's speech!"

"Well, but I think the school will reschedule and then you have to go through the whole thing again."

Noah gave a look of mock horror.

"Oh damn, don't remind me. I'm going to have to sit through another three hours of torture repeating this thing."

Rex laughed.

"It's all for the cert, man. And speaking of which, where's your next stop with that?"

Noah gave a lopsided smile.

"On my wall, together with the rest of my achievements."

"Show off." Rex playfully shoved his shoulder, then continued, "Seriously, I mean, where are you headed? Found any drama companies or productions? Or any worthwhile auditions?"

"Well, I did find an outstanding company that has opening spots. Been thinking for a long time now to join them."

"Cool. Where?"

"Far from here. But they don't exactly hold 'auditions' per say. Still, considering my experience and what I've been through, I'd say I have a pretty good shot," Noah drawled slowly the way he did when he wanted Rex to anticipate something.

"C'mon, quit stalling. Which company is it?" Rex urged.

Noah laughed lightly then suddenly looked at Rex dead serious in the eyes.

"It's not acting. It's combat," Noah paused to take a huge breath, "Rex, I've decided to join Providence."

Rex's jaws fell open and he stared at Noah with eyes wide with surprise.

He couldn't find the words to speak.

He didn't know if he should congratulate Noah for making the best decision in his life, or making the worst.

It was crazy and life threatening and Rex didn't want his buddy getting into precarious, life threatening situations any more that he already had.

Yet at the same time, that means they'd be fighting alongside, twenty-four seven, so it was darn right cool.

Should Rex jump for joy or shake Noah to his senses?

In the midst of his contemplation, there was a sudden boom and explosion from behind, the blast from the close radius knocking the both of them off their feet.

Rex recovered quickly and zipped back to the bonfire engulfing Blaster Prince.

He pulled out his jet wings and set his turbines on full blast, killing the flames, but it was too already late.

Rex grimaced and looked away from the decapitated, charred remains. Noah joined him and made a retching noise at the sight.

"Holy shit. What happened?"

Rex scanned around frantically, immediately encasing him and Noah within a sphere of energy field for protection.

 _Who could have done this? Where is he?_

The minutes ticked by in apprehension before Rex was sure that whoever did this, was already gone.

All he did was walk a couple of yards away, had his back turned and Blaster Prince was eradicated by someone who didn't want Providence to get him –who didn't want to risk Blaster Prince squealing.

And Rex had a pretty good idea who that was.

"Modifier –I think he caused this –Blaster Prince said earlier that Modifier would 'have his neck.'"

Noah grimaced.

"Right, so Blaster Prince was serious. Then Modifier probably wanted to destroy the link to him. Since he was the one who made the weapons, I bet he planted a bomb in Blaster Prince's suit."

Rex nodded slowly, agreeing with Noah.

"Great, so one villain lost, a greater one is found," Noah deadpanned.

Rex raised a hand and rested it over Noah's shoulder, fighting to keep his arm from shaking.

"Noah…are you sure about…" Rex trailed off, feeling fucking shaken up.

Recalling Blaster Prince's earlier words, Rex had the feeling that he had come for revenge for both him _and_ Noah. Blaster Prince might have heard Noah's name at the oilrig, but how was it possible for him to know exactly where to find him?

It was either he had contacts in the police that let him search through the database for Noah, based on his name and face alone. Or, he had talked to someone else who knew them, who was specifically aware of how close Rex and Noah were.

From the way Blaster Prince said it, Rex had the uneasy feeling that Modifier, was an old enemy, since the latter knew he and Noah were inseparable. _But who?_

All in all, this attack had happened too close, _much_ too close for Rex's comfort.

If Noah had been hurt –Rex immediately choked on the thought and found Noah's hand on his shoulder, giving him a light squeeze.

"Rex, it's gonna be okay," Noah said in an assuring tone, looking at him with a softened gaze that told Rex that he knew how Rex was feeling without him saying anything.

"Let me be your official wingman."

"I can't," Rex rasped, "I want to, but I can't."

"You have to, because it's only fair for me. We're buddies Rex –we go through thick and thin, together."

"I already have Bobo."

Noah grinned.

"Then having an extra 'monkey' is a bonus."

* * *

"Hmm, I'm curious about how that Blaster Prince blew up even though Rex hardly dealt enough damage," the pale man commented, smile ghosting in and out of his face.

"It appears his suit has already been rigged to blow, in case of failure," the woman suggested in a disinterested tone, half turning her head to face him from her kneeling position.

She was half distracted by her discomforts. Her legs felt numb, knees aching from remaining in the same position for long periods. She should stretch them, but she was too tired to move. For how long has she sat here, watching like an invisible, lifeless shadow?

Her master smiled, whites showing.

"Excellent. It would appear we have another thing in common with this weapons creator –the name's Modifier, is it? I believe you have found Modifier to be the same genius who made those altered, nanite bombs, isn't it?"

"Yes, I believe so," she answered, struggling to keep the dissent from her tone.

She gets irritated when he keeps asking redundant questions, those of which the answers were as plain as the moving figures captured in her all-seeing windows.

There were thousands of them, floating in disarray in the dim, empty space around them. So it was hard for her to keep track of each and every one of those scenes that showed so many unsuspecting lives going about their routines.

Even with the army of diminutive EVOs that her master have raised to aid in this task, it was still extremely taxing for her to keep focus. She wished he would bother the others instead, but they were unable to converse in the human tongue.

"Good. Keep on watching. We shall see if we can use such talent in our plans. In the meanwhile, do you have any progress on that other thing that I've asked you to find?"

She tensed, licking her lips nervously, forcing herself not to tremble.

"I will need more time. The universe is vast."

His smile was cut off his face immediately.

"That may be so, but remember, my patience is not."

* * *

Author's Comments:

Sorry if anyone finds it weird that Noah graduates in autumn. I'm not too sure how college semesters run in the States, so I've modeled it after mine.


	17. Back to Basic

**Chapter 17: Back to Basic**

(Noah returns for training to become a Providence officer… officially! XD)

* * *

It was week five and thus far, Noah found himself in déjà vu. It was likely because he'd already went through the initial training stages for two times already before this.

The first was back in junior high, where he spent over two weeks in a bet against Rex on who could last the longest. Then just last summer, Noah spent nearly four weeks in Basic before suddenly cutting it short in a bid to accompany Rex nearly every hour of day, since Rex was doing terribly at that point, no thanks to the revelations at Kiev and the relapsed EVO-cows.

Because Basic was so tough, Providence organized intake at least three times a year, limiting the trainee numbers at no more than a hundred forty so that every cadet can receive adequate training and proper instruction.

For this batch, the cadets numbered a hundred and twenty, and were divided into smaller groups of thirty for each training session. Every cadet rotates through the four platoons every alternate days, which Noah assumed was to get them to adjust and learn to work with different people for varying tasks.

A quarter had already given up at this point, given the exhaustive physical demands required for the tough, rigorous drills. Not to mention the early EVO-combat drill that the recruits were thrown in right after the first week. Noah recalled the disaster that happened in his first basic, and was relieved the incident never repeated. Nonetheless, a dozen or so left right after the experience, frightened off.

Thanks to his active habit throughout his teens and college years, plus his many run-ins on horrific EVOs with Rex, Noah survived well enough to remain standing with the remaining eighty-odd cadets.

The schedule was packed back to back with roughly sixteen to eighteen hours of training that alternated from day to night sessions every three days. It messed up the body's sleeping clock, and many cadets had trouble getting used to the sleeping pattern. Noah disliked it, but he resisted complaining – he understood the importance as it prepared them for being mission-ready at any time of the day.

The early weeks mostly focused on strength and stamina training – doing core exercises, running –lots of running – with and without heavy equipment, and lots of scaling and climbing over numerous types of terrain. No matter rain or shine, the drills carried on, as it was expected of a Providence solider to weather all types of conditions.

Most of the drills were carried out in Providence grounds, as the surrounding large, secluded canyon and deep valleys provided ample space and an assortment of terrain for ground training. But during *Pain Week, they hit the jungle, learning a whole different set of skills for maneuvering and surviving drills in the perilous wilderness.

They touched on a few other core outdoor training, like learning to handle several land vehicles, which was manageable enough for most since a lot of cadets already knew how to drive. But plowing through thick jungles and winding along rough mountain trails were a whole different level. The way the instructors pushed them, was almost as if the cadets were treated like kamikaze soldiers.

Thankfully, it was not all inhumane – despite the rigorous and harsh attitudes thrown to the cadets, when training was through, the instructors made sure to check on their injuries, and sent many to the infirmary – which was countless, needless to say. Those who were too badly injured, would be sent home on doctor's orders, ending their training.

Noah, was not unfortunately, not one of them. But well, not like he was secretly harboring for an excuse to end his misery here… well, maybe just a small part. Because damn! Providence training really was almost akin to hell. Sure, of course there's that whole sense of justice and protection that he'd carried. But sometimes, right after he collapsed onto his bunk, on the brink of exhaustion, the nagging feeling would come, making him wonder why in the world did he sign himself up to play the insane role as hero.

After all, the world has Rex, right?

Then again, every time his questing thoughts reached that name, Noah would find all his questions answered. Like Rex was the answer, the very reason, that made Noah's decision to join Providence the most logical and rationale one.

Rex wasn't originally made to work for Providence – just a mix of bad luck and freak circumstance that forced Caesar to inject the Omega One Nanite into him. At one point, Rex had even run around doing pretty shady things in Hong Kong when he was a kid. But as the saying goes, those vested with great powers have great responsibility – and Rex righted himself just fine, volunteering to jump head first into nasty, life-threatening situations. It wasn't even like Rex needed to sacrifice himself for others – just one look at the consortium, and it's easy to see how power corrupts the human mind. Yet Rex never once abused his power – such was the strength of his heart.

Perhaps it was this nature of Rex that rubbed off to Noah, inflicting Noah with the equal itch to get himself involved in every incident so long as someone needed saving, or some dangerous felon needed stopping.

The whole saga with the Consortium and Van Kleiss showed that the terrible things in this world was too much for just any one guy to shoulder. Granted, Rex was a total kick-ass with damn awesome powers, enough to transform into a mega bot. Still, they almost lost Rex in the monstrous battle, and it terrified Noah. Powerful as Rex was, he was no God, and was not infallible. So as much as he could, even in some small way, Noah wanted to provide his support, to share a part of Rex's heavy burden.

And what better way to lighten Rex's burden, than as his wingman?

Besides, Basic wasn't all doom and gloom. The one joy that Noah really took out from it, was weaponry training, perhaps because Noah fared quite well in marksmanship – he has eighty-percent accuracy, well above the average of forty percent. It was thanks to the fact that he has had many chances over the years handling Providence weapons, when he gets roped into missions impromptu by Rex. Only another cadet, Ronny, scored a higher hit-rate –at ninety-two percent – since he used to be a police officer, before deciding to switch to Providence.

Classroom instruction was another activity that Noah didn't mind – after all, it was heaven to sit back and relax in an air-conditioned room. The cadets sat in lecture rooms in semi-circle rows of chairs with tablet arms on raked floors. The lecturer would be up in front on a raised platform, with high tech big screens and visual and audio aids as a field of topics were covered, like battle and operation tactics, weaponry and even EVO biology and Nanite-science.

Rex occasionally joined in the classroom lectures, much to Noah's surprise, since it just wasn't Rex's style to be boxed up anywhere, particularly on dry topics like EVO biology and nanite science. Even more surprisingly, was how much of an expert Rex was on the topics!

Despite looking dead bored and nodding off to sleep –which made Noah wonder why the hell Rex even bothered sitting in with them – Rex would suddenly snap to attention and correct the scientist who was giving the lecture. Either that, or he would ask frustratingly taxing questions that caused the lecturer much stuttering and embarrassment because he or she had no answer for that.

Until finally, after several lessons, a lecturer finally exploded, barring Rex from joining his class indefinitely, before declaring a short break and stomping out the laboratory.

Noah then gave Rex a critical glare.

"Why are you making it your duty to torture our lecturer? I don't see you trying to make Hutton's life difficult," Noah deadpanned.

Rex gave an innocent smile.

"That's because he's untouchable. Doesn't mean the other instructors aren't."

Noah shook his head.

"You're the student from hell, you know that?"

Rex gave a look of gloating in reply before happily skipping out the class.

As soon as he was out, one of the cadets who sat on Noah's other side, Tio – a dark haired and dark skinned young chap with Hawaiian blood – whom Noah first made friends with, lifted both brows and sucked in a breath.

"Can't say I disagree with Rex. I can't understand half the hell's going on with nanite evolution and biometrics-what-not anyway."

Other cadets murmured their agreement, nodding to each other and adding their comments. Most shared the same consensus – even though only basic EVO biology and nanite analysis were touched, it was kinda brain-heavy stuff that felt more like a Doctorate's, rather than a military officer's studies.

"Well," Noah began after listening to them for awhile, "think of it this way – if you fully understand exactly what you're fighting, you can deal with whatever the situation throws at you, better."

"Yea, but I can just as likely fire my gun and use the EVO inhibitors and stuff without knowing how the nanites operate, right? I mean, to me, the basics as are far as recognizing an EVO and assessing which level of danger it has progressed to. Why do I need to know the different sub categories of EVO and this whole other bunch of stuff?" Tio spoke up, looking unconvinced.

Noah paused awhile, tapping his cheek as he thought how to explain to them.

"Okay look, let's take a scenario, say for example, there's a kid, broke a bone and has an open wound at his stomach, and is bleeding bad. But he's mutating at the same time. Rex is already on him, curing, but it's taking him a long time, some trouble because the nanites are resisting. And remember, he's bleeding from the gut right? But the paramedic team isn't there yet. So what would you do in this situation, if you were the closest officer?"

"Easy. While Rex is curing, I'd bandage the wound," Tio answered without a pause.

"Wrong!" Noah said, and could tell from the surprised looks of his classmates that they thought the same answer as Tio.

"Why not?" someone asked.

"Because you never, ever, touch the EVO or Rex when he's curing - ever! You disrupt the connection that way, and makes it even harder for Rex to cure the kid. Rex could accidently activate your nanites instead, making you go EVO."

Tio appeared to pale.

"Right, so instead, I should… put a collar on the kid? To impede his transgression?" Tio corrected himself, sounding less confident now.

"Exactly!" Noah nodded and Tio lit up on his reply.

"I see, but what about his wound? We just leave it bleeding? And shouldn't we have to stabilize his fracture as well?" another classmate pointed out.

"We do… nothing about it, unless Rex manages to cure him, then we can safely go ahead and attend to the wounds," Noah answered, much to their surprise.

"It was a trick question," Noah quickly clarified, folding his arms, "Once a subject begins evolving, the active nanites accelerates healing. By the time Rex is done curing, the wound would likely already be closed and the bones at the fracture, fused, leaving maybe only a hairline."

"That makes sense, they heal real fast," Tio nodded to himself slowly, comprehension dawning, "That's why EVOs are so tough to handle. They're almost unstoppable unless we use weapons to aid us, or have Rex's help.

"Exactly!"

"Then what about EVO types? Don't the collars work on them all?"

Noah shook his head.

"Ever read about Zag RS?" Noah lifted a brow, but only met blank faces.

 _Geez_ , Noah wondered if these people even bothered doing their research and homework before signing up.

"Hmmm, I did. I think I remember…." a blonde woman spoke up after a few moments, and rested her chin on his knuckles on her tablet desk, looking like she was recalling details of what she read, "it was a data-type nanite – the only one of its kind."

She scrunched up her face and shook her head.

"Yea, it was a pain to deal with – collars don't work on that type."

"That's right, in fact anything with digital programming, or electrical powered, even power cables or wiring, or any source with transmittable data, have to be kept far out of reach, otherwise, Zag RS would simply download herself onto another vessel to operate from."

"Wow!" Tio's brows shot up, "I can't believe such a thing exist!"

"You better, you'll know soon enough. Every EVO type has its strengths and Achilles heel – that's why it's important for us to know," Noah concluded.

"Yea, I get that now," Tio nodded, then looked between Noah and the woman, "But how did you guys know that?"

"Rex told me," Noah paused, then pointed with his chin towards his classmate, "she likely read it on Providence open files, right?"

She nodded.

The rest of his classmates gave looks of surprise.

"You mean, there's info on Providence case files, online?"

Noah gave them puzzled looks.

"Yea, anyone can access them from the website's main frame."

"Isn't it classified info?"

Noah shook his head.

"Not since the consortium dissolved and the government took over – you know, for public transparency and shit. It has become mandatory to declare mission details once the case is considered solved."

"Damn! I should get a good look of it when I get the chance," Tio punched a light fist into his other palm.

"You should. It'll really help you get through the theory classes better," Noah advised.

"I see, no wonder Rex acted like such a know-it-all in class," another classmate piped up, "I've heard all the rumors about Rex's fists, but guess he's pretty much got a better handle on things then what I've heard. He's got a lot of experience facing the real deal, huh?"

Noah laughed lightly.

"Ah-hah, his reputation precedes him. But don't let news coverage fool you. They don't even know half of what really goes down," Noah folded his arms, shaking his head.

"Plus, he grew up with the smartest woman nannying him," Noah added, laughing to himself as he recalled how Rex used to whine about being subject to hours of torture with Holiday being his personal tutor.

Though Rex didn't go to school, Holiday was adamant that his education should not be neglected, and had dedicated hours in between here and there if she could, to make sure he caught up on a vast range of topics from maths, science, geography, history and the like.

"You must mean Dr. Holiday."

Noah smiled.

"Yea."

Then as if on cue, the double doors slid open that instant, and at the doorway entered the woman herself, brows angled into a fierce quirk, one hand planted on her hips, the other pinching Rex's ear between her slim, elegant, dainty fingers.

She was a formidable picture – mostly because she got the all powerful nanite-master twisted up in agony next to her, whimpering like a wounded puppy.

"Ow… ow…ow… Holiday, please, could you lighten your pull, just a teeny bit?"

Holiday ignored Rex's complaint.

She marched in, dragging poor Rex with her, shocking the whole class. She put a heavy foot on the platform, stomping with a resounding thud.

A classmate jumped in his seat in front of Noah. No one made a sound. Everyone held their breaths, no doubt frightened of this woman who dared take such a fierce handle of the EVO-hero whom everyone has heard tons of stories about.

"Alright, cadets," she got up squarely on the platform and started in a no-nonsense tone, "I've been hearing that my assistants had alot difficulty handling your lessons, no thanks to someone here."

She twisted Rex's ear harder, making a few students suck in their breaths sharply along with Rex, as if they were also feeling the pain.

"So, I've decided to dedicate myself to take over your education. I just hope you are just as dedicated in learning."

She quirked her brow.

"Is that clear?"

"Yes Mdm!" the cadets answered in unison.

"Good, now, get back to your seat so we can start lesson proper," Holiday ordered Rex, nudging towards the seating area.

Noah tried not to laugh at Rex's sulky, embarrassed form as he quickly slunk back into the empty seat next to Noah, hunching forward in defeat.

"What sort of powers does she have?" Tio whispered to Noah, giving her a pointed, slightly fearful look.

Noah chuckled softly.

"She was his nanny."

* * *

Noah swayed on the balls of his feet, very nerve, very muscle on his body alight with fire, alive, and jumping, even though he looked a calm composure on the outside.

He seized up his opponent carefully and vice versa as they circled each other on the sparring mat in the combat training hall. Their poses mimic each other, feet astride, elbows up and close to their chest and faces in a protective stance and as well as for easy strike.

The chestnut-haired, tanned skin guy was almost of the same height and stature as Noah, and had a young, smiling, boyish face. Noah didn't let that fool him into thinking it was an equal face off.

He bit back his nervousness as he felt waves of experience rolling off his opponent. Even without earlier introductions, Noah could tell this was a seasoned fighter. He could tell from the swaying, relaxed posture he held his back and arms, flexible, ready for quick action, and the firm stance of his feet, well placed, grounded, legs strong.

Nathan looked young, but he was actually already a senior agent– meaning he's been a Providence combat officer for eight years. It was unusual for a Providence trainee like Noah to be sparring with a senior officer in hand-to-hand combat class. But Hutton deemed him and Ronny an exception, since they had knocked out every single one of their fellow cadets in every combat session. So he pulled the both of them out to join a higher level class.

Noah rolled his shoulders and his neck, feeling a little restrained in the white constrictive armor padding attached to the standard issue black turtle tee and heavy-duty stretch pants. Normally, the uniform doesn't bother him, and was in fact, pretty comfortable. But now, sensing a much agile and nimble opponent before him, Noah wished he could ditch this get up since he'd be a lot more comfortable in a simple tee.

A sudden flash! – incoming the right – Noah just barely blocked the flying fist before he was forced to draw up his left knee, blocking Nathan's kick with his shin.

Left –right – Block! Block! Spinning-kick block!

Noah barely had time to register where the limbs were coming from. Nathan was fast – like lightning, and just within the first few minutes of trying to keep up, Noah was already out of breath.

Noah jumped backwards, giving a wide berth, some distance, a few additional seconds to catch his breath. His chest was thundering as if he'd racing a marathon.

Nathan smirked, completely at ease, looking confident like he knew he would win the fight. Noah squared his jaw. Damn the cocky bastard! Even so, he wasn't going to go down easy!

Noah took a big leap, high in the air, drawing gasps of surprise from the circle of Providence soldiers watching, and landed into a roll. Nathan doubled back, stunned, unprepared for such a move – which was good for Noah, who struck out both arms sideways in a crouching position, grabbing Nathan's ankle and yanking him hard off his feet.

"One!" came the cry from a referee who stretched an arm in Noah's direction, signaling the win belonged to Noah.

To Nathan credit's, he twisted his chest to the ground and softened his fall with both palms and elbows on the thin matt, then pushed off the matt quickly.

He cocked a brow at Noah, less cocky now, but still quirked a half-smile.

Noah made his challenge with a cocked brow of his own.

Nathan moved in instantly, a straight blow entering from Noah's left. He swerved to dodge and almost simultaneously threw out his right elbow to block a kick that came up the other side. Noah was locked in that fraction of a second, and was almost too slow to miss the undercut that came rushing up his chin. But he made it in the nick of time, recoiling his head and bending back in a quick roll, which he continued into a fall, using the momentum to flip his legs upwards, striking Nathan under his chin.

Nathan stumbled backwards a few paces whilst Noah flipped his legs back down and was back up on his feet. Nathan nursed his chin, and gave Noah a pointed look, brows twitching. His smile was wiped off his face.

"Two!" the referee stretched his arm again in Noah's direction.

Noah pointedly made the effort not gloat, and it was lucky he did, as he was quickly knocked off his feet and flipped to his back over and over and over again in spectacular fail.

"Six!" the officer shouted, arms stretched in Nathan's direction.

Noah forced himself to his feet even though his body was screaming after slamming six times on the ground. The match wasn't over.

Nathan's smile returned since getting the upper hand, and his punches and kicks flew with faster intensity. But Noah caught an open window and delivered a spinning kick, connecting the back of his heels to the side of Nathan's face. Nathan spun around and fell splat on the ground, not able to block or soften his fall.

"Three!"

Noah gave a small smile – the win was his.

"Alright, good game," *Shadow, the Hispanic, black-haired combat master presiding over the training session, commented, nodding at both of them.

It signaled the end of their sparring match, so Noah went over to Nathan's fallen side.

He caught Nathan's soft groan as he approached and almost felt sorry for his last kick.

"Thanks for the match," Noah said cordially, holding out his outstretched hand.

Nathan gave a lopsided smile and took it, allowing Noah to pull him up.

"Same to you, it was quite impressive, for a newbie. I guess romping around with Rex was a great experience, huh?"

Whether Nathan was being sarcastic or chummy, Noah couldn't tell. It was already well-known who Noah Nixon was – the best friend cum partner in crime to Rex. Even the most clueless cadets already knew his name before he could ask them theirs.

Maybe they thought he was lucky, as they frequently cited jokes and assumptions about Noah having it easy, or better, since he'd Rex around. Noah paid their words no mind – since it was true anyway – he was the luckiest guy alive to have Rex as his best friend.

So Noah only shrugged and smiled.

"The perks of being his wingman."

Nathan gave him a strange smile.

"Yea, lucky you. I imagine you're getting a lot of it, huh?"

Shadow cleared his throat and nodded sideways, signaling for the both of them to rejoin the rest seated around the sparring matt.

Nathan and Noah exchanged bows before sitting cross-legged next to each other on the ground.

"Alright, notes. Talk people, tell me what you saw. Nathan's good points – " Shadow opened the discussion, circling the group slowly with hands behind his back.

"Attacks fast, in all angles," one of the officers observed.

"Nimble, quick to draw, quick to withdraw."

Noah listened as more remarks poured in. It was interesting to hear what people saw – being in the fight itself and caught up in the moment, Noah had missed some of the things that the observers saw, and it made good study.

"Good, good. Now Noah – his strengths –"

"His kicks."

It came from beside him, and Noah turned sideways to give Nathan a surprised look, not expecting his opponent from earlier to raise his good points.

Nathan gave Noah a half smile and pointedly made a show of nursing the side of his face.

"He has great legs –leg power, I mean," Nathan continued, "Jumping, darting, he's quick on his feet, pretty unusual, even for a trained fighter. Plus, did you see his spinning kick? Pretty cool. I've never seen anyone do it, I mean, aside from you, Sir, of course, and Six."

Shadow nodded, and waved his hand towards the others.

"Agreed. Noah has lots of finesse in his lower body. Anything else to add?"

The others piped in, and Noah listened intently, making mental notes for self-improvement.

Then Shadow moved on to their weaknesses, areas where they could improve, which Noah paid more close attention.

After that, Shadow bade Noah and Nathan back out onto the sparring match, and made them reenact some of the moves that they made but in slow-motion, directing their line of movement to nearly exactly as how they had done it earlier. Noah was surprised at Shadow's seemingly perfect memory – even he, himself, wasn't completely sure of all his earlier moves. But Shadow could direct them with ease, guiding their arms and legs along, and giving specific pointers on how they could better counterattack and defend.

Done giving his guidance, he made them reenact specific moves in full speed, whilst employing the advice and tips he had given earlier, making them redo the moves several times until they each got the counter right.

When they were done, Shadow called up another pair, Ronny, matching him with another senior officer, and repeated the coaching session.

Ronny was very fit, well-muscled, and looked like he'd fit as a bouncer at some club with his stocky frame and small mustache. He was quite impressive, and fared better than Noah, since he'd more combat training and experience. He'd been with the police force for a decade, and was almost on par with the senior he sparred with. The other officers were clearly impressed by him, and had more good points to raise.

They cycled through the whole class till every pairing had their turn, and by the end of it, Noah felt like he'd learnt more than the entire year's worth of judo classes that he had secretly been taking whilst in his last year of college.

"Wow, that was a good class," Ronny commented, walking next to Noah as they exited the training hall.

Noah nodded.

"Yea, Shadow's a pretty impressive coach."

With the knack for delivering tips for better attacks and defense, it proved that Shadow was a pro-fighter. It wasn't any wonder then, that just barely seven years since he left Van Kleiss and joined Providence, he'd quickly rose through the ranks and become a Sergeant.

"Of course, he didn't earn his special appointment as 'Combat Master in Arms' as a fluke, you know," Nathan commented, coming up to Noah's other side.

"You're right, but I was a little disappointed. I thought I'd be able to see Shadow's moves, like, he'd teach us the kung fu stuff that I've been hearing about from the other officers," Ronny lamented, sounding a little miffed.

Noah laughed at the same time that Nathan did, and when they caught each other's looks, they laughed again knowingly.

"Was it something I said?" Ronny looked puzzled.

"My dear junior – Ronny – was it?" Nathan gave him a look of endearment like he was looking at a young kid, which was kinda funny, since Ronny was already well over his mid-thirties. "You haven't heard right. You should clean your ears."

"No," Ronny frowned, "I did hear what I heard. He's got all these lightning fast moves that's so fast, you can't see! Pretty cool!"

Noah patted Ronny's thick, muscled back. Noah has heard the stories from Rex more than enough times to get the literal meaning behind those words. Funny how Ronny just didn't catch it.

"Then it's not what you heard, but your understanding that's the problem."

"What part am I not getting?"

"The seeing part."

"Huh?"

Nathan scratched the back of his head and looked amused at how he should explain it.

"You'd said it yourself – he's so fast – you can't actually see his exact movements," Noah tried explaining.

"Huh?" Ronny repeated, still slow and clueless.

Nathan just slapped his forehead and laughed.

Since Noah and Ronny had about an hours break until the next drill, they decided to hit the showers to wash off their sweat. Nathan followed them too, and made them laugh the whole way with his funny stories about the other officers.

They made their way to the men's shower hall on the second floor, within the main training wing of the combat agents. It was large, split into two with a center partition, with nearly four dozen cubicles lined along four walls. There were plenty of lockers set against the far wall and several benches sitting around in the spacious room.

The shower room was also conveniently connected to the laundry department at the side, and it was where they stopped by first to get their fresh change of clothes and towel, before entering the showers. By then, Noah had laughed till his tummy hurt, so he sagged against the wall to rest. Then he noticed some of his friends were there, along with a few other fellow cadets whom he recognized.

"Hey guys," Noah raised a hand, "How's your combat class?"

Tio immediately turned into an excited bunny and nearly lost his balance as he attempted to put on his pants whilst hopping over to Noah and Ronny.

"Ah, the same as what you already went through," one of the cadets nearby answered in a bored tone, continuing to undress.

"What about yours? How was training with the Combat Master?" Tio was the only one who didn't look dead, "Was it really true? He moved so fast that you can't see?"

Tio looked like he had stars in his eyes, looking so excited that Noah couldn't bear to enlighten him on the truth.

Ronny took up the task, shaking his head and sighing.

"No Tio, he didn't demonstrate any of his moves! Guess his kung fu is secret," Ronny complained, slinging an arm over Tio and walking them inwards to an empty bench, his big frame almost dwarfing Tio's lithe body.

Noah hugged his sides, feeling himself about to crack up again.

"Ahh, my adorable little lambs," Nathan folded his arms as he leaned by the doorway, giving Ronny and Tio amused looks, "You guys are too cute, and _too delicious_."

"Hey you," a tall brown-haired guy with really broad shoulders came up behind Nathan and rapped his knuckles on his shoulders, "I knew I'd find you here. You're supposed to help clean up our bunk after training, weren't you?"

Noah recognized him as Matthew – sometimes he'd find Rex hanging out with him, playing card games with Bobo together with a few other officers.

"Oh c'mon, just escorting them to the shower room. You can't tell me to leave these cute little lambs on their own, right?"

Matthew gave a look of mock-outrage and grinded both knuckles on the sides of Nathan's head.

"Actually, you should leave them alone, you pervert! That's why I'm down here to rescue them from the big, bad wolf dressed in sheep's clothing!"

"Ahhh ahhh," Nathan whined and flailed around, trying to get free, "That's mean!"

Noah would have continued laughing at their chummy, funny antics, but he choked on his laughter instead.

"I mean, just look at that, all the fresh meat!" Nathan exclaimed and gave a pointed look at the other guys, giving Noah more than enough confirmation on where his tastes lie.

"Don't you agree, Noah?"

Noah jolted at Nathan's question, and met his haughty gaze and suggestive smile, so demanding, and so, very dangerous. Noah shifted uncomfortably, unease growing in his stomach.

Before Noah could reply, Matthew gave a clout to Nathan's head.

"Stop trying to pollute our new recruits."

"Ouch, that hurts! I wasn't even doing anything – why are you always overreacting?" Nathan complained, cradling his head and glaring at his friend.

Noah took the chance as they bantered, to make his escape, hurrying over to Tio, who was just done dressing. Ronny, on the other hand, had disappeared into one of the empty cubicles.

"Hmmm, I'm curious though," Tio thought aloud, "Why 'Shadow'? And not 'Flash', or 'Speed.'"

Noah couldn't help but crack up at Tio's ridiculous suggestion as he stripped his top.

"Seriously? I thought a fan boy like you should already know," Noah started, "That was his nickname when he was Jungle Cat, you know, the EVO that used to work for Van Kleiss, then got roped into Providence?"

"No, actually, it's more accurate to say he changed his name from Jungle Cat to Shadow after he worked here. To suit him better," Nathan clarified, suddenly coming up to the group. He leisurely leaned against the lockers before them, whilst Matthew remained at the door, talking to some other guys.

Nathan explained that back then, it was surprising that despite his hulking form, he was always able to hide himself very well. Also, he moved so swiftly, those of them who worked with him could never keep track of him. Then just when they thought he was missing, he'd show up out of nowhere from a dark corner –hence they came up with the pet name 'Shadow.' And since he didn't lose his skills even after he was cured, the name just kinda stuck.

"Oh, so that explained it," Tio nodded thoughtfully.

"You know, I could tell you more stuff about him. If you like, you can come up my room tonight," Nathan suggested, staring straight at Tio, wearing just the slightest glint of the devil in his eyes.

Tio obviously didn't catch that, looking hopelessly guileless and excited.

"Yea, sure! I'll be down!"

Noah wasn't quite sure how to react except to let his brows just fly off his face.

Thankfully, Matthew came to Tio's rescue.

He grinded Nathan's head again.

"All I did was keep my eyes off you for a minute and there you go, poaching again! You best keep your paws to yourself, animal!"

Tio laughed lightly, even though he looked rather puzzled, obviously not catching Matthew's meaning.

Noah cleared his throat loudly.

"You know, actually, I think Tio should be down sleeping early – we have another long day of training tomorrow. We're finally doing level five marksmanship tomorrow, remember? Hutton has been warning us that it'd be hell."

A collective horrified gasps filled the whole shower room, as if Noah has dropped a bomb on them. All heads whipped to his direction, eyes balled, staring with a mix of pity and horror.

Noah and his fellow cadets who were still changing outside the shower cubicles, shifted uneasily.

"Um… is there something that we should be worried about?" Tio asked in a puzzled tone.

A couple of the other Providence officers gave crow laughs while others just shook their heads and sighed.

"Ah-ha….. so it's finally time for the Vampire Lord to take over," Nathan drawled.

Noah scrunched his brows.

"Who? You mean *Nyquist?" Noah remembered reading the training schedule that the long-time serving Sergeant would be the one training them for the level five marksmanship drill, "Why is he the Vampire Lord?"

"Have you guys, never heard about the sixty percent golden rule of the drop out ratio?" Matthew asked.

Noah exchanged looks with Tio and his other fellow trainees and shook their heads.

Nathan held out an open palm perpendicular to the ground.

"Twenty percent after pain week, twenty percent after the first trial EVO-combat drill," Matthew rattled on and as he did, Nathan folded down his fingers, "ten percent after going through the Vampiric's Lair, five percent after anatomy lab class, and the last five percent after the final, EVO-combat exam."

"R-right…." Tio gave a flat tone and started to look jittery, "So what exactly is the Vampiric Lair?"

"Ho-ho-ho," Nathan gave an evil laugh, "You'll know soon enough. But don't worry – just make sure not to fuck up, so you won't fall into the pit."

"Then if we do? What happens?" Noah gave an incredulous gaze.

"Then be prepared to have fits all day and night and not get any eat or sleep," Matthew warned.

* * *

"Congratulations, cadet! You've just shot your granny! Now go back to zero!" Nyquist yelled sarcastically through speakers from the overhead platforms where he stood.

Without mercy, he pushed a button that caused the two feet tile beneath an unfortunate cadet to drop open like a pit trap, causing the cadet to fall ten feet into the mud bath below.

"And you! Bye bye to baby and you!" the sadist announced a bit too enthusiastically, like he relished sending incompetent cadets into the hellish pit below the maze grounds.

"Arghhhhhh!" came one resounding yell after another, as many cadets kept shooting at the wrong target. It didn't mean that their torture was over though.

From the quick recounts of those who had fallen and restarted, they were forced to trudge through the thick and heavy mud whilst besieged by giant flies the size of balloons, with needle stings long enough to make his fellow grown man scream like banshees.

Noah gritted his teeth as he took cover behind a twelve feet wall, dodging a barrage of slime balls flying from the opposite end of the thirty foot corridor. His fellow cadet was not as cautious, dashing past him into the line of fire, getting hit.

"Oppsy daisy! You get hit, down you go!" their marksmanship trainer announced without mercy, and gave an evil cackle. The cadet disappeared into the ground below without a second's respite, his screams following behind him in long echoes.

Heart thumping and galloping a thousand miles per minute, Noah forced himself to steady his breath and calm his nerves. If he panicked, he'd lose focus – and he has no desire to encounter whatever's down below. If the pit, nicknamed 'Vampiric lair' didn't frighten you, then the screams of terror, that could be heard from below, would.

He gingerly peeked round the bend and timed his moves, dropping into a quick roll to dodge a high ball and quickly aimed his laser-light gun at the acrylic-board EVO, square on the tiny red dot on its chest. The turret that was attached to the top of it then halted its barrage.

"Noah!" came Tio's exhausted cry behind him.

Noah had a fraction of a second to whip his gun back as he caught the sound of a faint clocking of a machine. He recognized it early on that the sound signaled when a turret was activated and about to shoot. He beamed his laser right on the mark, deactivating the slime turret behind Tio in the nick of time.

"Phew, thanks man," Tio huffed, bent over panting and resting his palms on his thighs. He was a terrible sight, full body encased in mud.

Noah can't imagine how many times Tio had fallen through, but didn't get the chance to ask as more panels slid open, revealing turrets with cartoony depictions of EVOs hanging down from each slime barrel.

There was nothing kiddish about the whole exercise though. The other Providence officers weren't kidding when they said level five markmanship was hell beyond Pain Week.

Noah and Tio scrambled about, ducking and dodging the slime balls, racing to get to the other end of the corridor. More turrets appeared up front, low on the ground, shooting slime at their feet.

Noah cursed aloud and jump-kicked against one wall, rebounding off the momentum to kick back at the opposite wall, effectively dodging the low balls as he bounced between the two walls. At the same time, he managed to shoot all the turrets, ending the slime fest.

Tio wasn't so lucky, getting plummeted on all sides. So down he went, with zero chance of escape.

Another cadet raced into view, also muddy, and looking dead pissed. She shot at an EVO that dropped down behind Noah and kept rushing forwards without stopping.

Noah followed, close at her heel when they turned down one corridor and hit a dead end.

"Fuck!" she cried.

They spun around and met another board that suddenly dropped down.

She shot it before Noah could stop her, since the image was of a small boy, not an EVO.

"Fuck!" she cried.

"Enjoy the blood suckers, my dear!"

"Not again!" her cry dragged on as she fell through the gates of hell.

Noah squared his jaw as he continued down the opposite way, joined by other muddy fellows.

 _EVO- shoot, slime- duck, duck, duck, duck, EVO-shoot, human – DON'T SHOOT!_

The mantra went through Noah's head as he bounded down the twisting maze of tricks, dodging slime, jumping back and forth like a circus performer, and still having to be quick on the draw, hitting the right targets.

It didn't help to have Nyquist berating them with sarcastic words, seemingly enjoying their misery. No wonder the senior officers dubbed him 'Vampire Lord'. Evil laughter punctuated his yells, suggesting that he thoroughly enjoyed sending the poor cadets down to be fed to the EVO, blood sucking flies.

There seemed no end to it. And Noah was getting exhausted. Just as he thought his legs were going to give way, a long resounding horn aired.

Relief washed over him, and he promptly crashed to his knees as the walls rescinded slowly, disappearing underground, revealing what it was originally – just an enormous, empty hall with white silver tiles. Noah imagined it should have been pristine, as now it was marred with piles of icky, green and blue slime scattering the floor, as well as the sight of dirty and messy, sorry-looking cadets.

"Fall in," Nyquist ordered coldly as his platform descended.

Noah somehow found the strength to stand despite his shaky legs. All around him, the other cadets half crawled and limped their way to formation in front of the training officer.

When the platform was at level with the cadets, Nyquist stepped off and walked up and down the platoon, wearing a look of utter disappointment as he swept a cold, critical gaze over the platoon, regarding them solemnly. Noah couldn't help but shiver inwardly before the fierce instructor. He was only of medium height, with delicate facial features due to his mixed Korean descent, but he was as pale as sheet, white skin a contrast to his jet black hair, the very image of what Dracula should look like. Of course, his earlier, sarcastic and cruel comments kept replaying in Noah's ear, making Nyquist an overall terrifying instructor.

Nyquist took his time criticizing each and every one of them, including Noah. Though he coldly congratulated Noah for not falling into the pit, he emphasized that Noah had still failed along with the rest of them since none of them made it out the maze within the cut off time of two hours.

Noah felt himself hunch smaller along with the rest of the cadets. It didn't help that all around the upper floor in viewing corridors, were several dozens of pairs of eyes watching them. Noah felt a mix of embarrassment and agitation at being watched by so many combat officers – no doubt they were there to see how the cadets fared. A quick glance overhead showed some with sympathetic faces, as well as many others who obviously looked like they were enjoying the cadets' misery.

Noah resisted rolling his eyes as he realized despite this being an environment full of grown ups, really, it was not that much different from college. It was like how the seniors sometimes like to taunt the freshies with jokes or ridiculous tasks before accepting them into their ranks.

In this case, though the training was essential for later combat, Noah felt that at least him and his fellow cadets could have been better warned about the training hell.

Finally, Nyquist let them off, and the trainees barely held it together whilst they exited the training hall – or more accurately, limped and crawled their way out. Other agents rushed in, scrubbing away the slime with high-tech looking vacuum, no doubt preparing for the next training group.

Once out the white floors, the cadets gave collective groans and collapsed onto the floor, exhausted. Noah also sank to his bum, tired as hell. His fringe was plastered to his face, soaking wet with sweat despite the air conditional facility. He'd need a shower along with the other cadets, but for now, he was too tired to move.

"I'm dead. I've lost my legs," Tio cried aloud.

Noah gave his friend a sympathetic half smile.

"Nope, they're still there. I'm looking at them."

"Really? I can't feel them."

"Can't feel mine either," another lamented, then brushed his slime-covered hair and gave a disgusted look, "This really is disgusting. I hope this washes off."

"It will. Otherwise we would have seen Providence officers with permanent gunks in their hair," Noah reminded.

"Lucky you don't have to deal with it. I can't believe you're freaking clean!"

"I can! I knew you wouldn't get hit at all!" Rex chirped excitedly from the stairwell and skipped towards them.

Noah frowned, sort of feeling like Rex was the last person he wanted to see.

"Can't believe you're really right on the money," Matthew commented, appearing behind Rex and striding over, keeping in pace with Rex.

"Noah was totally unscathed like you'd said!" Matthew continued as he stopped before Noah, "Guess you two really are best friends."

Noah rolled his eyes.

"Yea, right, some best friend he is."

Rex's smile left his face and he immediately gave a worried look.

"What, did I detect some unhappiness with me?"

Noah got up slowly and dusted his butt before elbowing Rex at his side.

"Make a guess, traitor."

Rex's eyes balled like a shocked puppy.

"Noah! No, what did I do?"

Noah rolled his eyes again.

"It's what you didn't do, idiot!" Noah chided.

"What's this? A lover's quarrel?"

Noah stiffened and whipped his head to the source of those words. Nathan sauntered over with a few other officers in tow.

"There, there, Rex, don't fret, I'll keep you company instead if Noah has abandoned you," Nathan cooed and slung an arm from behind Rex, drawing lazy circles on Rex's chest.

Noah gawked, especially since Rex didn't seem to react to it.

"C'mon, Noah," Rex ignored Nathan, "Are you angry because I didn't tell you anything about the training earlier?"

Noah couldn't reply. Seeing such a shocking picture before him all but made him forget why he got pissed.

Nathan – that devil – aimed a haughty gaze at Noah, then grabbed Rex's shin and stretched his neck, attempting a kiss.

Thank god, he failed – Rex flinched and redrew his head sideways quickly whilst pushing Nathan's cheek.

"Alright, cannibal, that's as far as you go, I'm busy with something here," Rex warned in a mock-threatening tone that showed he wasn't really annoyed.

"Aww, but I can't help it when you were pouting like a wounded puppy like that – you were so irresistible!" Nathan sulked with a half-teasing smile dancing on his face.

Rex smirked and folded his arms.

"I know, but unless you're in a skirt, I'm not gonna fuck you anytime soon."

"Mmmm, begging me to cosplay? Rex, didn't know you were so kinky."

"Oh Jesus! This is embarrassing to watch!" Matthew deadpanned and yanked Nathan off Rex, drawing a loud yelp from the other brunette. "Please, you shameless man-eater! When will you learn? Stop embarrassing yourself in front of all your juniors!"

At the mention of said group, something glinted in Nathan's eyes as he suddenly directed his gaze at the other cadets, looking like a wolf regarding his livestock.

"Ahh, boys," Nathan started and stepped past Noah, "Great job out there today. Bummer that you have gunk all over. You know, I'd be more than happy to help with washing off the slime."

The few cadets sitting around close to Noah, who had obviously overheard Nathan's earlier flirting, trembled evidently.

"Uh, no… that won't be necessary," one of them gave an uncomfortable laugh.

"Well then, how about a back scratch when you start itching? I bet you guys were stung a lot."

"That won't be necessary either." Noah could swear his fellow cadets were all cringing and looking darn frightened.

"Thanks Nathan, but we'll be fine," Tio smiled brightly, the only one who was blissfully unaware of Nathan's immoral offer.

"Thankfully, even though I was stung like a dozen times, it doesn't seem like those EVO flies did any damage," Tio continued as he pushed up his sleeves and started inspecting his arms. Noah glanced at him and observed that the slime had seeped through the clothes, painting his skin blue and green. But aside from that, he couldn't see any bumps, or redness or swelling or wounds that could have been inflicted by the EVO flies.

Still, Matthew's words of foredoom surfaced to the forefront of Noah's head like a nagging that wouldn't go away. He still couldn't help feel a sense of trepidation and anxiousness over what Matthew really meant.

Somewhere behind, someone cleared his throat loudly, and when Noah glanced back to the other officers, again, they all exchanged looks like they knew something bad was coming, but god damn it! They just wouldn't say what!

* * *

When they hit the showers, every cadet was complaining about the slime that was impossible to wash off.

"God damn it! I'll be here all day and night!" came a loud grumble.

"Argh! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck," came another.

As the showers became filled with complaints and lamentations, Noah silently thanked god that he was lucky enough to be spared.

"Tell me about it! This stuff is fucking everywhere! I've been washing my balls forever and I still can't get it off!"

Someone could be heard laughing from outside the cubicles.

"Well then, need my help washing your balls?"

By now, Nathan's voice was recognizable.

"T-that's ok, I'll pass!"

"You dog!" Rex's voice hovered in, "Matthew was right in guessing that you'll be here hoping to snap up a cadet or two. Can you just quit while you're ahead?"

"What gives? You never used to care about what I do anyway, so what got ants in your pants lately? Unless, you're worried that I might steal away a certain blonde?"

"Listen you, just keep away from Noah, got it?"

"Oh, possessive, aren't you?"

"Shut up! You're bad for us!"

Noah found himself laughing quietly as their banter carried back and forth.

Really, Nathan was like a loose dog, but in a friendly sort of way. Noah pretty much warmed up to him quickly and liked him, except for the few moments when Nathan would make him squirm in excruciating discomfort under his prying and demanding gaze.

It was obvious that Nathan has found him out as gay and was trying to suss him out. Noah didn't believe that gay-dar exists – those you could tell were gay, were because it was obvious. Noah, on the other hand, had been very careful and discreet.

He didn't ogle at anyone, not even in the showers where in and out were plenty of half-naked and naked male bodies. He didn't make lewd jokes about men. He didn't touch anyone inappropriately. And he didn't flirt with anyone.

Yet Nathan could tell, and it made Noah feel some levels of anxiety because of it. Had he been obvious without realizing it?

Noah was the first out the shower and found Nathan casually lounging on the bench next to Rex, one leg up on the other's knee, with a palm bracing the bench.

Noah only wrapped his hips with his towel since he had left his fresh clothes outside.

He didn't miss Nathan's hungry gaze drawing all over his naked chest but he didn't pay him any mind. Rex, however, shot up and unceremoniously pushed Nathan's shoulder and head, turning it the opposite way.

"Hey! What gives?" Nathan complained.

"Give my buddy some respect!" Rex demanded.

"But all I did was just look!"

"Yea right! I can read your face, pervert! You're forbidden to look!"

The surrounding officers who were changing laughed at their antics, rolling eyes and shaking heads.

Noah did the same.

"You clowns," he said as he pulled on his clothes.

Tio came out that instant, in only his underwear, scratching away at his arms and legs.

"Well, you managed to get most of it off," Rex congratulated as Tio looked much cleaner and almost rid of slime. Still, Tio had some splatters of glob still stuck to his hair.

Noticing that Tio didn't look too happy, Noah resisted laughing.

"Yea, but for some reason, I'm suddenly itching all over."

"So I'm not the only one?" another cadet asked as he exited his cubicle, hands furiously working their way around his body, face scrunched up.

Noah saw Nathan and Rex exchanged glances, as did the other officers in the shower.

Nathan made a show of checking his watch.

"Yep, it's about time," Nathan announced, wearing the most wicked expression.

"Time for what?" Noah was quickly filled with dread.

"To see the doctor," Rex said in a sympathetic tone.

Right on cue, the cubicle doors burst open one right after the other.

"I can't take this shit no more!" someone screamed in agony and Noah didn't have time to even catch his face as he raced out the shower room, clawing all over his chest and arms, still half dressed. The rest of the cadets followed suit, half-hoping, half-stampeding in various states of undress – fully naked even – disappearing out the door like fleas were jumping on their skin.

Noah balled his eyes, horrified by what in the demon's hell inflicted them, and raced after.

* * *

Noah had a tight face drawn as he watched his fellow poor cadets writhing and squirming on the bed. He watched them through the transparent window from outside the room with a heavy heart. Rows upon rows of them filled the infirmary hall, arms strapped to their sides to prevent them from peeling off their skin. For indeed, it was no mistake that they'll keep scratching even if they bled.

Their skin were red and bumpy, marred with an ugly rash that hurt Noah's eyes to see. The Providence medical team were bent over them, applying some form of cream in a thick layer, caking them in white. It didn't look to offer any relief and only looked more to Noah like a funeral mask.

"Poor, poor miserable souls," Rex gave a sympathetic sign, stuffing his hands into his pants pocket.

Noah glared and jabbed him.

"Yea right, you're obviously enjoying this, aren't you? You and the rest of the combat officers were all secretly enjoying our suffering while you were watching us!" Noah short of shrieked.

Rex gave a look of aghast.

"What? No! Hey, I'm not like Nathan, ok? Besides, I wasn't the one who put them through this!"

"Oh really? Well you might as well did, because you damn well knew about this, but didn't even bother warning me."

"B-but I couldn't! I mean, you know I'd have told you, but I wasn't allowed! Six and Hutton would kill me if I did!" Rex defended, arms flailing about in panic, face suitably ridden with guilt.

Noah narrowed his gaze and pushed Rex's shoulder, short of fuming.

"I thought rules don't exist in your dictionary!"

"No, it doesn't, but this is different. Look, it's a combat agent's code of honor!" Rex tried to explain, "It's like tradition, you know? Plus, it was part of training to keep it from you guys!"

"Oh yea, tradition all right – tradition for the other officers' amusement."

Noah then hooked Rex's neck and pretended to choke him with his elbow.

"You demon! You wanted to see me like that? Is it funny to you?"

"Gahh! Spare me!" Rex choked out, tugging at Noah's arms, "C'mon, you know it's not like that! I thought it was okay even if I never tell you, because I knew you wouldn't get hit!"

Noah tightened his chokehold, teeth grinding.

"This idiot… do you want me to kill you?"

"I swear it's the truth! Just ask the other guys! I've been telling everyone that you would be unscathed!"

"You idiot!" Noah scolded, then grinned in spite of his annoyance.

* * *

Dinner at the canteen was a boisterous affair. By then, all platoons of cadets have rotated and completed the training in the Vampiric Lair, with Noah and Ronny being the only cadets who were safe. All the others were sadly strapped down in the infirmary ward, and would recover well enough to be released only after a full day.

Noah was at first, surprised to bump into Ronny, thinking that he was the only one unscathed since he hadn't bumped into another cadet all day. Then again, he shouldn't be so surprised as he'd seen Ronny's skills and he knew about the Muscle man's experience.

The bigger surprise was the big woo-haa that was generated over Noah and Ronny. They were practically cheering as if the two cadets were heroes returning from war. Dozens of combat officers were coming over to Noah's side, shaking his hands and slapping hi-fives with one another. Several yards away, the same was happening with Ronny. Noah gave Rex questioning looks and wanted to ask what was going on, but he didn't get a chance as Rex was locked in a hi-five fest with one guy after another.

Then someone clapped Noah hard on the shoulder.

"I've heard you did well, kid."

"*Jackson!" Noah recognized the lieutenant who often played card games with Bobo. He was the only agent able to keep up and match Bobo, only because he was equally good at cheating.

The chocolate-haired man gave Noah a thumbs up and a broad smile, crinkling up faint laugh lines that betrayed his otherwise handsome, youthful looks.

"Thanks Sir, but I think I was just lucky," Noah replied humbly.

"Just plain luck alone wouldn't put you at second place on the cadet ranking."

Noah lifted a brow – he remembered seeing that he was only around forth place or so just the week before – not that he really paid any attention to it.

"Yea, my buddy's moving up fast," Rex turned his attention to them and gloated as if he was the one winning honors, "Soon, he'll topple Ronny."

Rex threw a thumb backwards at Ronny's direction, inciting Noah to roll his eyes.

"It's not a competition, Rex."

"Of course it is! You always want to compete in everything!"

Noah resisted pointing out that it was only if it were in Rex. Just the childish, competitive way that Rex acted, was always able to incite Noah in jumping into all sorts of dumb contests, regardless of what it was.

"Whatever, Rex. I just want to survive this and pass Basic, once and for all."

"Oh, you'll do just that, Noah, there's no doubt about your skills," Matthew suddenly piped in, coming up from behind, "Did you know, asides from Six and the other top ranking agents, both you and Ronny are the only ones who didn't fall into the pit at the first try."

Noah's brows shot up, surprised. Maybe that was why the other officers looked so darn impressed.

"Hey, you missed me out," Rex pointed at himself, "Anyway, not like I needed this type of training. But Six forced me."

"You don't count," Matthew gave him a pointed look, "You passed only because you used your giant hands to flatten the whole training arena then flew over on your Slyder."

"Well duh! They didn't say that wasn't allowed."

Matthew ignored Rex.

"Anyway, like I was saying, I've been here over six years and I've never seen a dude jumping and back flipping the way you did. It was incredible."

"Nah, you exaggerate," Noah shrugged, "Don't leave out Six and Shadow. I've heard and seen them do better."

"Maybe, but they've got more years of experience and training than you," another guy added from behind Matthew. Noah almost thought it was Nathan, since it always seemed like one would suddenly appear with the other. But it was a blonde-haired guy with lightly tanned skin and a light dusting of freckles on his upper checks.

Noah suddenly found him quite familiar, and remembered that he was the quiet guy who usually hung with Matthew. Rex talked about them sometimes, them being two of the several combat agents with whom Rex were more friends-than-colleagues with.

"Cody!" Rex exclaimed, beaming, "You're finally back to duty!"

Cody nodded.

"You've missed a lot! Mostly of Noah's terrific performance as he climbs up the cadet ranking."

Noah cringed and slapped his forehead.

"Seriously, Rex, just stop. You're making me blush."

Jackson suddenly gave a hearty laugh.

"Come now Noah, don't be shy. My boys are right. I've reviewed the footages of your performance and I have to say, you've got some real horsepower in those legs of yours."

Noah warmed slightly, embarrassed to be praised by a ranked officer.

"Well, that's to be expected of a basketball champ!" Rex declared, planting his hands on his hips.

The other guys raised their brows in surprise. Noah felt himself coloring but couldn't stop Rex in time.

"You should know Noah was given a scholarship for being the basketball ace in college." "Rex, shut up!" Noah tugged Rex's arm but Rex wouldn't take the hint, continuing on.

"He led his team to nationals, you know? He was even offered a spot by MBA – too bad he turned it down because he wanted to focus on his college studies."

Noah flushed as Rex blabbed. Of course, Noah was proud of his achievements, but compared to the fight that these officers faced in combat, it seemed so insignificant and dumb.

Noah was sure they would pass it off as a youth sport.

Instead, Matthew's eyes lit up.

"You play basketball? And holy shit, you were a champ? Then why didn't you say so? We're always looking for guys on our team!" Matthew exclaimed. "You should join us – in fact, we're hitting the court tomorrow!"

Noah was stumped by Matthew's words, but seeing his face, he could tell that Matthew wasn't just patronizing him.

Jackson gave another hearty laugh.

"Yea, he'll make a good addition to the team."

"Please, say yes, say you'll join us!" Matthew beamed and practically looked like he had stars in his eyes, which couldn't be more amusing as Noah never expected such a serious looking guy like Matthew to have such a goofy side.

Noah laughed.

"Yea, sure, but it's been a while though, so I might be a little rusty."

"Oh don't worry, these boys play quite regularly so you'll be back to full gear soon enough," Jackson clapped Noah on the back again.

Noah beamed.

A bunch of guys suddenly wedged in for more hi-fives with Rex and Matthew, and gave Noah congratulatory handshakes. Noah couldn't help but feel his suspicion growing. Even if he was indeed one of the few guys who survived unscathed in level five marksmanship training, all of their actions were just too weird.

"You know, I've been meaning to ask," Noah looked at the agents around him, "Is there another reason why everyone's overjoyed with me surviving the pit?"

Jackson gave a loud booming laugh.

"Of course, since thanks to you, a lot of people have become a hundred bucks richer!"

It took two seconds before it clicked.

"What? You mean you guys placed bets on us?" Noah asked, tone incredulous.

Rex slung an arm across Noah's shoulders.

"Yup, and those who were smart, put their wagers on you like I did."

Noah stared at all the shamelessly grinning faces before him.

"You have no morals," Noah criticized, jabbing Rex for the umpteen time that day, "I can't believe you did this!"

Rex flung his hands up helplessly.

"What? It's tradition! Besides, I've never betted before until now. You should be happy that I've two hundred percent confidence in you!" Rex grinned, reaching over again and patting Noah's shoulder.

"You're unbelievable!" Noah complained. Despite that, he couldn't stop a smile from tugging at his lips.

* * *

Noah was shocked to see the polished maple flooring, and the caskets standing proudly under high ceilings and professional spotlights of the indoor basketball court.

When Matthew talked about having a game, Noah assumed he meant a court in the nearest town. But to come to think of it, that wouldn't be possible since the officers were not allowed to leave their post unless they were off-duty, which was far and few in-between. Most practically live here for months.

"I can't believe you never told me that you have a basketball court here," Noah confronted Rex with an accusing glare.

Rex had the cheek to look innocent.

"No! I'm equally astounded as you are, Noah!" Rex gushed, feigning ignorance, then bounded down the steps between rows of staggered benches to where Matthew and the other guys were gathered.

Noah chuckled, annoyance quickly dissipated, since he could understand why Rex never told him. Rex obviously chose running out of Providence to play ball with Noah so that he could escape the confines of these white walls.

Matthew was on the playing floor, messing around with Nathan, while Cody hung out by the benches with a few other agents whom Noah did not know. Several dozens of officers were scattered about along the front rows as well, and they all had their heads turned towards Rex who was speaking like a loudspeaker.

Hearing Rex boasting loudly about Noah never missing a hoop, Noah quickly raced down in attempt to shut his friend up before he would get any more embarrassed.

But as soon as the guys turned heads and saw him, they started pressing for a demonstration.

"Oh no, nah, let's just get on with the game. I'm only gonna disappoint you guys. I really haven't played in a long time."

"C'mon," Rex edged, brows wagging, "Quit your bullshit. You could best me every time we played."

The other agents gave catcalls and cheers, pressing.

"Alright, fine, fine," Noah conceded and jogged to the court towards Matthew and Nathan who were tousling over the ball about five feet from the casket.

Catching sight of Noah approaching, Matthew and Nathan dropped their tug of wall and grinned at him.

"Good to see you've joined us, Noah," Matthew announced, passing him the ball.

Noah lightly juggled the ball between both palms, brows raised.

"I can't say what those guys there are expecting, a performance?" Noah mused loudly.

Nathan laughed.

"Yea, make our jaws drop."

"Alright," Noah bounced the ball experimentally a few times then threw a glance to the guys at the side benches, "You guys ready?"

"Be sure not to close your eyes or you'll miss this!" Rex added excitedly.

"Are you serious?" the words suddenly cut into the indoor court, echoing aloud. "I came wondering what the hoo-ha was all about, but you're just gonna shoot from there?"

Noah searched for the owner of the voice and found a guy with dark blond hair standing midway down the steps, hands stuffed into his pockets.

Noah smirked.

"Yea, I'm sorry, did you think this is too close?"

Then Noah flung the ball overhead with a light jump, throwing it towards the hoop at the further end, without even facing that direction. It seemed the court held their breath till the ball entered the net.

The guys erupted into cheers and clapped, clearly impressed.

Rex raced to the ball that bounced lightly across the floor, scooping it with a hand. Turning back, he faced Noah with a huge grin. He threw the ball back to Noah and asked for another show. So from all directions, and in all ways that Noah knew how, back hand, round the back, sideways, Noah flung the ball, wrist flicking and rolling easily, and was always able to put the ball through the hoop, The onlookers were almost at a frenzy, cheering and clapping reaching a fever pitch.

It almost felt like back in college when he was in a game.

After a dozen shots, Rex planted his hand on his hips and turned to regard the skeptical blonde who was the only one who didn't clap or cheer.

"So, convinced yet? It not, you're welcome to join our match later."

The blonde smiled, but his next words were anything but friendly.

"I'll pass. Don't want brushing bodies with man eaters."

Noah didn't miss the pure insult. Unlike Matthew's jokes, this guy spoke with a tone full of hostility.

Some guys at the benches gave a slight jeer at the blonde's retreating back as he climbed the staggered benches and went out the exit.

"Just Ignore him," Nathan's voice suddenly came right next to Noah's ear, "He was talking about me, by the way."

Noah whirled sideways and found Nathan with a carefree smile.

"Well, who was that anyway?"

"An asshole," Rex scoffed, jogging towards him.

"Andrew," Matthew replied as-a-matter-of-factly, "And yes he's quite the asshole. So us man-eater friends try to keep out of his way."

"Aww, I'm so touched over your loyalty," Nathan cooed and went over to paw at Matthew's chest.

"You! Hey! Stop your itchy hands, will ya!" Matthew caught Nathan's wrist and gave him an agitated glare, inciting Noah to laugh. Really, the two of them were too comedic.

Then so softly, just barely above a whisper, Rex asked Noah if he was alright, face completely serious.

Noah gave him a big smile.

"Don't fret about it, I'm cool. I've been snubbed worse," Noah replied in a soft voice.

"Alright you guys, c'mon, did you come here to flirt, or play ball?" one of the agents called out from the benches, to which the guy next to him added, "Hey man, I think that means the same thing, no?"

They exploded into laugher, and Noah could tell that their jokes were said in good humor and had no ill intent.

"Alright, since everyone's pumped, let's get the teams going," Matthew clicked both fingers, demanding attention.

As Matthew counted Noah into his team, the other team booed.

"Hey, I was the one who called him in first, okay? So I get first takes!" Matthew defended, smirking.

"Hey, hey, something's not right," Rex cut in and looked to his both sides, "You've got full teams already, so where do I go?"

"Sorry, you're forbidden to play."

"What?" Rex gave a mock look of outrage, "No way! If Noah's playing, so am I!"

"We don't play with cheats," Nathan stuck out a tongue.

"No way, I won't, this time, I swear!" Rex raised two fingers in oath.

"Uh-uh. No way, remember that one time you nearly destroyed our precious court?" One of the guys reminded, wagging an accusing finger at Rex.

"Yea man! We nearly lost it for good since White Knight refused to put out the budget to repair it!" another semi-fumed.

Rex looked suitably chastised, but even so, Noah found his sulky and sorry demeanor so cute that he didn't feel like he wanted to defend his friend.

"Really? Rex, you didn't share that story with me. How did you damage the court?" Noah prodded, deciding to taunt him.

"Argh just leave me alone! You guys suck!" Rex complained, flinging his hands into the air, "Fine, you guys go play without me. I'll just watch."

Noah chuckled.

"Don't be glum Rex, I'll play for the both of us," Noah gave him a thumbs up.

"You better do me proud," Rex warned as he walked backwards to the benches.

Noah added another thumbs up.

By the end of game, Noah's team won, of course. And when Rex bounded over the court to clap Noah on his back, Nathan wedged himself between them, demanding for a kiss to cheer him up since his team lost. He squashed Rex's cheeks between his palms and dived forwards, but Rex stopped Nathan with palms flat on his forehead before their lips touched. Rex half threatened and laughed at the same time, bantering with Nathan. It surprised Noah to see their chummy closeness again, especially since Rex seemed completely unbothered with flirting. Recalling Rex's reaction at Staizer, Noah thought Rex straight darn couldn't stand being hit on.

He felt something rise at the back of his throat, making his air passageway feel overly tight and uncomfortable.

"I need water," Noah declared, though it seemed his feet had forgotten how to move, so instead he remained frozen to watch the spectacle before him.

Matthew stepped over to Nathan and tried to save Rex again.

Cody came up towards them, and he gave Nathan a sort of stern look.

"Try not to snatch someone else's man from right in front of them," Cody scolded in a light tone.

Matthew and Rex both gave a bark of laughter, seemingly taking Cody's words as a joke. Noah however, warmed and quickly turned away so no one could see his blush.

"So it's okay, to snatch him behind his back?" Nathan continued his nonsense.

Rex gave a more raucous laugh.

"Please, don't be ridiculous! You know I don't swing that way!"

Noah was in dire need of water, now and finally broke from his leg lock and started walking away.

"Hey, Noah, hang on," Rex grabbed Noah's wrist before Noah could take three steps.

"I need water, Rex."

"I know, but could you wait? I have yet to collect my winnings!" Rex announced happily, rubbing his hands together.

Noah gave him a questioning look.

In answer, Rex cupped his mouth and shouted out to the guys on the benches.

"Don't forget y'all, we bet that Noah will score at least twenty hoops today."

A bunch of groans rolled out as the guys started rummaging their pockets for their wallets.

Noah stared at the absurdity of what was happening.

"Yes, all that moolah, pay up guys!" Rex was happily rolling in his fingers.

"You even bet on that kind of shit?" Noah questioned, appalled, then shook his head.

Rex slung his arm over Noah.

"C'mon, that's how I earn my salary. It'd be my treat next time we head out for movies!"

"Hey, and don't forget me and my winning team!" Matthew called out in reminder, looking smug.

"You guys too?" Noah swept an incredulous gaze over the lot of them, "What's with the sudden betting fever?"

A couple of them gave loud laughters.

"It's the norm, here Noah," Matthew informed.

"Huh, funny I had never realized."

"You will, soon enough, once you assimilate to our lifestyle." Matthew gave a cheeky wink.

"You guys are immoral," Noah criticized, but laughed in spite of it.

Whilst the guys were busy collecting money, Nathan came around Noah's side. He slung an arm round Noah and dragged him a way off from the other guys, giving Noah a devilish smile.

"So? What's the deal between the two of you?"

Noah gave him a clueless look.

"Hah?"

"You know, exactly as I mean."

"I'm not following."

"Like, what's really going on with you two?"

"Um, We. Are. Best. Friends?" Noah tried not to sound biting.

Nathan quirked a brow.

"I know that, but what else goes on when it's just the two of you? Are you like, secretly dating?"

Noah stared at the brunette hound like he was insane.

"Can you not find ridiculous things to bet on?" –then Noah suddenly had a suspicious thought, and quickly continued, "Like, are you guys betting on this secretly?"

Nathan gave a laugh.

"No, no, don't worry, this is just my private thought," Nathan assured, "But like, seriously, anything? Between you and him?"

Noah rolled his eyes.

"Nothing."

"Hmm… so it's one sided, huh?"

Noah opted to remain silent.

Nathan hummed abit, giving Noah a cheeky look.

"If you like, I can help play cupid."

"Hah? Are you dumb?"

"I serious."

"Don't say stupid things," Noah threw back, frustrated, feeling like his cordial face was going to crack. So much for acting class if such a mild thing like this would throw him off.

"Look, I've helped a couple of guys, you know? I could help you."

"No, thank you," Rex interrupted loudly, having suddenly paid attention to them and come up to them.

Rex wedged between him and Noah and wagged a finger warningly at Nathan.

"Whatever help it is that you're offering, Noah doesn't need it," Rex declared, "I'm warning you, stop pawing over Noah."

"Why? You jealous?"

Noah stared daggers at Nathan from behind Rex, wanting nothing more than to kill this meddlesome guy.

"Hah, no, just concerned you'll gobble up my buddy!"

Nathan hummed aloud, grinning from ear to ear.

"Quit smiling like that, you're creeping me out!" Rex complained.

Noah took in a deep breath and turned around, tugging Rex's wrist.

"C'mon, you know his nonsense won't end. Let's just go grab a bite, I'm famished."

Once they were out of the basketball court, Rex suddenly apologized, surprising Noah.

"What's that for?"

"Hmm, for not warning you beforehand, I guess, about some guys like that prick."

"Andrew, you mean?" Noah scoffed, "So not bothered by that. I told you, I'm cool."

"So then…" Rex trailed off abit, before continuing, "the other guys… no one else knows about you?"

"No," Noah confirmed, immediately catching onto what Rex wanted to say, "I think it's best to just keep it under covers."

"Noah," Rex touched his arm briefly, "Are you worried? Don't be, because damn I'll make any guy sorry if they harassed you."

Noah gave Rex a grateful smile.

"Thanks man, but it's not that. I don't really care if people knew, I mean, look at Nathan! – he's out, and he's doing well. But, it's just less complicated, I guess, so for now, I'm just keeping mum on it."

Rex nodded, "Roger that. My lips will be sealed too," he made a show of zipping his lips with his fingers.

But he frowned and continued, "Except that it might be hard with Nathan around. Really, that guy is quite dangerous. He might target you, so you should be careful around him."

Noah felt his funny bone twisted up inside, but in a way that was of pain rather than humor.

"Funny, because it looks to me like you're the one who should be careful. You didn't even try to defend yourself from Nathan's pawing," Noah shot back, not quite able to keep the menace from his tone.

Rex gave a surprised look, as if he hadn't noticed it himself.

"Well, that's not, I mean, that was nothing. I'm used to it."

"You're used to Nathan hitting on you? So he's that crazy about you huh?" Noah felt his voice stretched high and thin, vocal muscles no longer under his control.

"No fucking way!" Rex refuted, "Nathan's always been like that – he picks a random guy to tease every week! Besides, he seldom hangs all over me like that. I don't know what made me his sudden fish for the week."

"But you don't seem so bothered by it," Noah pointed out, "Maybe you should give him a try."

Rex stopped dead in his tracks so Noah half turned backwards to face him, and immediately felt a pang of guilt for his thoughtless words.

"Don't fucking joke about it, Noah."

"What's the big deal?" The words flew out his mouth even whilst knowing he was veering off the rails.

A smirk climbed over Noah's face even though that wasn't what he really wanted. He couldn't stop, even though he knew he shouldn't.

"A kiss doesn't seem so bad. Won't kill you - we've kissed a couple of times, but you aren't dead."

Rex's jaws opened and closed but no words came out. Then he heaved a large sigh and clutched a bunch of his short fringe, brows knitted together as he did so.

"Noah, I don't know if you're mad at me or something, but regardless, I just wanted to warn you not to be bought into his charm. I mean, he's a great friend and cool and all, but he's infamous here for being a wolf. I just wanted you to know that."

Noah felt an ugly smile crawl into his face.

"Well, thanks for the heads up. But don't worry, he's not my type."

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Pain Week – shown in the original cartoon when Noah and Rex first tried out basic.

*Shadow – was Jungle Cat

*Nyquist – a character from the original cartoon itself. Was one of the agents who first captured Bobo Haha

*Jackson – he appeared in the original cartoon too. I just made him play a bigger role here.


	18. One of the Men

**Chapter 18: One of the Men**

 _A continuation of Noah's Basic._

A thousand apologies for the long overdue of update... got caught up in alot of things and basically this was so hard for me to write... anyway, it's a little long and draggy here... _ but I hope it remains enjoyable.

Aside from this, thanks so much to all your lovely comments! Appreciate that you took the time to let me know what you think.

PS: Next chapter will be up faster since I've actually had the skeleton done earlier, and +SPOILER+ it will be more action-packed!

* * *

"I can't," Ronny started, voice trembling as much as his visibly shaking hands.

"It's ok, you're getting there," Tio cooed close to his ear whilst he leaned over the table, "Just take it nice and slow."

The younger man laid a gentle hand over Ronny's thick wrist, guiding him through the motions, surprisingly skilled despite his young age.

"Just push it in," Tio encouraged, then bit his lips, mirroring Ronny's tension and anxiousness despite his obvious experience.

The squishy sounds of wet, slippery flesh melding together echoed in the room, overly loud to Noah's ears, and sending his hairs to stand on its ends.

"Ah! I can't, I'm stuck!" Ronny cried aloud, aghast, and terrified at his sloppy performance, but the usually mellow and easy going Tio gripped his arms firmly, face suddenly looking fiercely demanding.

"Don't stop, there –you almost had it, just keep going."

Their surrounding partners –three other guys –gasped as they watched on, unable to tear their gazes from the interchange. Their breaths ghosted before them as they breathed heavily, chest rapidly rising and falling in anticipation.

Ronny gritted his teeth, face entirely red like a tomato, veins visibly popping from his forehead as he put full concentration and determination to making this a good show for his fellow mates.

His shaking fingers pushed in deeper into the pallid flesh, disappearing into the deep folds.

"Ahhh – no!" Tio suddenly gasped aloud and dug his fingernails into Ronny's skin, eliciting a hitch from the older male. "Not there – here!" Tio showed him the moves, being more forceful and impatient now.

It was almost surreal to see the normally, tough-as-nails Ronny reduced to an inexperienced, meek fellow whilst the easy-going, air-headed Tio suddenly reveal a dominant side. It was only in such a room, that the human nature could reveal itself in ways that the outside world would not see.

Noah watched alongside, transfixed in an alien mix of fascination and horror, never imagining in his wildest dreams that he would be here at it making a mess with a gang of guys whose legs were all shaking as if they would melt into goo any moment.

One of the guys could hardly keep himself together, clutching at himself with the dire need to be released from this affliction. At one glance, Noah could tell that the guy was going to blow. He too nearly felt like he was at his limit.

"Quickly, here," Tio instructed, "You two, don't just stand down there like a rock! Get in the action and help Ronny."

Tio beckoned his other partners, and they nervously spread the round flesh, giving Ronny easier access and opening up the unholy gates for all to see. Everyone swallowed hard upon the sight, shivers now overcoming them and racking through their shoulders.

"Tio, I think that's enough," Noah croaked, desperate to hold on to the last vestiges of his reason before they all descended into madness, "We shouldn't be pushing –"

"What are you talking about? We've come too far to stop now!" Tio refuted, then reached down, roughly brushing twin sacs that hung beneath his crotch, the movement itself sending a terrible shiver to roll down Noah's spine.

"No, I can't!" Ronny protested meekly, looking white as sheet, "Are you sure?"

"Yes! Do it, Ronny, quickly, with your hands!"

"I can't take this anymore!" one of the guys finally screamed.

"You can't!" Tio was quick to catch his arm before he fled Tio's side, "Be a man and see this through. It'll be your turn next so you better be sure you're good, or I'll be terribly disappointed."

"As will I," a voice loomed from behind the gang.

Startled, or perhaps at his limit, Ronny slipped, and like a dam burst, thick, viscous fluid exploded out, coating the whole group with slimy vestiges of unspeakable atrocity. Tio screamed, long and rasping like a banshee, louder than the shouts from the rest of the guys.

"Oh, my, my, what a mess," the EVO-anatomy lecturer shook his head slowly, pushing up his glasses, "And such a shame too, to think you are the group who have went the furthest."

Indeed, a quick glance showed Noah's was the only group remaining in the laboratory, since they'd steadily managed to dissect the table-sized, dead but preserved EVO-insect, layer by layer till they reached the grotesque collection of its internal organs and stuff that Noah had no interest of knowing. The rest of the groups had long given up, and fled after accidently dicing the wrong parts and having earlier bathed in its exploded flesh and fluids like Noah's group just had.

Noah's jaw tightened in chagrin as he looked at the gunk and slime between his arms and down at himself. A nice, hot bath and three days' worth of puking should just about remedy his current situation.

"Still, you've done a good job," the lecturer continued, smiling quite proudly at them, "You've come close enough for me to tell you where you've gone wrong."

One of Noah's lab partners retched and promptly fled, which was a good cue for Noah and the others to follow suit.

"Wait, I haven't even started!" their lecturer called after them dejectedly.

"Sorry," Noah threw back as he and Ronny picked up the unconscious group mate who had fainted way early on, balancing the guy between their shoulders, "We don't have the stomach for this any longer."

Then they left, leaving behind an excited Tio who was the only one with the guts to stay.

* * *

"I have to say, I was surprised how Tio could keep his calm," Ronny commented as he divested of his dirty clothing in the shower room.

"Yea? Well, I think he said he was a medical student in college," Noah explained just when he was about to pop into the cubicle.

For indeed, even though Tio was just as clueless as the other cadets about EVO biology and Nanite-science at the start, he picked up quickly and fared so well, he practically aced every single test and understood well enough to give the other classmates extra coaching sessions. Ronny didn't know this, since for those two classes, he was not with them. It was only this lab session that their classes combined.

"What? No way! A smart kid with a one-way track to his doctorate and yet he's here?" Ronny sounded like it was a shame.

"Well, we all have our reasons, don't we?"

"What's yours then?"

"Just wanted to kick ass, and save the world," Noah grinned by the cubicle door. "You?"

"My wife, she went EVO before," Ronny shared, then leaned over to let Noah see the photo he kept of her inside a locket hung round his neck.

"Wow, she's beautiful," Noah noted aloud.

"Yea, she's an angel, even if she died an EVO, she left me a beautiful girl – told myself that I have to learn how to deal with EVOs so that if it ever happened to my kid, I can protect her, give her shelter from harm," Ronny informed in a matter-of-fact tone.

Noah froze at his words and took in his soft, melancholic gaze and the hunch at his shoulders.

"You know, like how we support Rex, I think other EVOs need our support too. After all, many of them EVOs were once human."

Noah couldn't speak, air hung heavy with the regrets and sadness of the older man. Noah daren't ask for specifics, but didn't need too anyway, since Ronny's sentiments reached him.

Providence was created to protect people from EVOs, since once turned, they lost control and went wild. Hence, it was also easy to forget that EVOs themselves were once human and that they too, faced their own perils, either from EVO hunters, or from other stronger EVOs.

Poor Ronny, if his wife had lived through danger long enough, she would have been back to normal after the Worldwide cure, and would be able to live together with Ronny and their daughter.

Noah only nodded, meeting Ronny's solemn gaze with understanding before they each went into their own cubicles for a bath.

It was clear that they were both in Providence for the same reasons. Noah was sure, it was the same even for the rest of the officers.

Each and every one of them were taking a risky position for the sake of protecting someone. In a way, with such an intrinsic common value, Noah felt a sense of bond with the other Providence agents, even if he didn't know all their names, or even if he wasn't very close to many of them. Hell, there's only a small handful who he knew personally and knew very well, and a part of him worried a bit if he was able to settle into military life and get along with everyone.

At least, with their common goals, Noah assured himself that he should be just fine. What he had to do first, was graduate from Basic.

When he was done showering, he found the cubicle next doors already empty, showing that Ronny was done earlier and had left, which was just as well, so he needn't see the sordid actions of a pair of particular officers. Noah casually swept his glance to the other side and it was just his luck to see a Nathan making out inside the cubicle with another combat officer, so eager and impatient that they neglected to shut the door.

Noah flushed at his brazen openness, sure that every guy in the shower room could see them, even if Nathan and his partner were being quiet. Despite this, the rest of the men didn't seem to care, save for a few who just rolled their eyes and looked heavenward.

"Get to your room, you two!" one of them shouted, looking agitated enough but not totally angry. Some chuckled after that, then someone helped to pull their door shut.

Noah was surprised on revelation of the casual approach everyone took.

In the past, Noah only used the showers closer to Rex's room, which was on the upper floors in the science block and was more private, used only by the upper ranking officers, and was usually empty. Nowadays, he preferred this common shower, since it was closer to training grounds.

Since then, he's been discovering things that quite honestly, surprised him, because he hadn't noticed before. The Providence officers all seemed to be pretty open and accepting. Noah has spied a few other gays, not crazy open like Nathan, but not closeted either. Sexual orientation aside, Noah became aware too about the way some of the guys seeked their release. The men were discreet, but it didn't take two cents for Noah to figure out what two guys wanted to do together by getting into the same cubicle. After all, there were plenty of stalls.

He recalled how easily Rex accepted him coming out, how coolly Rex acted with Nathan, and wondered if his best friend had been long accustomed to the existence of male-and-male relationships.

Did Rex know what some of the officers did together to blow off steam? Some were not even gay to boot.

Suddenly, Noah realized that Rex growing up in such a facility might have been precarious in his adolescence, yet he had never heard Rex mentioning any such things.

In the middle of toweling dry his hair, Nathan and his one-minute lover exited the cubicle, and Noah watched their backs, feeling a pang of jealously at their easy affection and closeness.

When he bent to pick his stuff on the bench, he found Cody suddenly sitting here, staring intently at him.

"Not the last sight you'll see, you know?" Cody quirked a brow.

"I know. I've seen these things a few times," Noah deadpanned.

"And… it doesn't bother you?"

Noah found Cody giving him a quizzing look.

"No, not really."

"Because you're the same?"

Noah froze then forced himself to relax. Not like it was a big deal if people knew, since they were not homophobic about it.

It was just that he hung around Rex all the time, and he knew how rumors fly. He didn't want people getting the wrong idea about his best friend.

Noah opted to remain silent.

Cody shrugged.

"No problem, I'm cool if you don't wanna tell. I'm just saying, I've been platoon mates with Nathan for six years, been around all his dates – which were plenty – I can tell ya, since he's such a playboy – so I can tell who's into a guy."

There wasn't a point lying, so Noah remained mum. Wasn't his style to be unfriendly, but hey, some things were best left unsaid.

Cody didn't seem to mind Noah's silence,

"Anyway, that's all I wanted to say, since I'm kinda in the middle ground."

Noah wasn't sure what that meant, but he didn't want to pry. He didn't know Cody very well yet, and wasn't sure he wanted to enter personal domain with someone he just knew.

Then Cody turned to leave, but just then, Noah finally spoke, asking him a question.

"Nathan's dates… were they all Providence officers?"

Cody threw back a half smirk.

"Yea, he's got a handful from every department – Intel, weaponry, public relations and at least one from every combat platoon."

Noah sucked in his breath. That was quite a lot.

"But he's never gotten any flak? I mean, you know, never got it hard from anyone?"

"I'd be lying if I said everyone's comfortable with it. So yea, there is a handful who has been brash with him, but he'd just ignore them. Not much they would really do anyway."

In answer, Noah only nodded silently to himself.

* * *

"Take a break, Holiday," Noah urged, setting down a cup of coffee in front of her.

The dark haired beauty who looked to have never aged since he first met her in junior high, looked up and relaxed her furrowed brows.

"Thanks Noah," she smiled and did as he suggested, leaning back into her chair and massaging her brows. "It's rare to see you these days, aren't you kept up in training?"

"Yea, but I have a rare break this afternoon."

"Ah, a miracle then," Holiday quirked a knowing brow at the much desired break, "Funny, then, that you aren't looking for Rex."

"I did, but he is on a mission," Noah informed, noting that Holiday must have been so focused on her lab work that she wasn't paying attention to Rex's schedule. Normally, Holiday would have kept one eye on Rex's biometrics whenever he was on mission, but Noah supposed that Holiday could have assigned someone else in her team to be on the watch.

At the moment, Holiday paid enough attention to catch the wishful tone in his voice, as she asked, "Well, you wish you are right there with him now, don't you?"

She gave him a knowing smile before taking a sip of the drink Noah served her.

"You know me too well," Noah grinned, and leaned against her tabletop, "Yea, I can't wait to officially get on missions with him."

Holiday nodded, wearing that big-sister-slash-motherly type gaze. "I know Rex feels the same."

Noah smiled softly at her, thankful that in an institution filled with hard heads and stoic men like Six and White Knight, a caring and thoughtful Angel like Holiday was around to soften the hard edges of Providence folk. He was glad Rex had someone like her by his side while growing up.

"And thank you," she added on after taking half her drink, "for supporting Rex."

Noah nodded. "You can count on me to watch his back."

Holiday released a soft sigh, as if she had been consistently holding onto her concern for Rex, and could now allay some of her worries on Noah's shoulders.

"So," she started, soft gaze quickly sharpening, face returning to the commanding intellectual look appropriate of the head of the Providence Science divison, "You didn't come here just for simple chit chat, did you?"

Noah chuckled to himself –as expected of the shrewd Doctor, to be able to tell what he needed.

"Actually, I was hoping that you could fill me in with all the latest on the reprogrammed nanites mutations and REAS, and anything else your team have found. I think I need to stay on top of things if I'm really to help Rex."

Holiday quirked a sideways smile.

"Sounds like my type of conversation," she got up, beckoning him and went over the main computer system, passing by her team members who were busying about their research.

Noah already got the gist of happenings from Rex's frequent updates, but Holiday gave crucial details and explanations that really helped Noah to understand the whole situation. It was mental burn to take everything in, to know what was going on, yet not know the solution to it.

It wasn't any wonder then why Rex kept stressing about the whole thing. Sure, he acted goofy and playful half the time, appearing happy-go-lucky. Noah, however, could tell that Rex was merely dampening down the cloud of anxiety he had over the matter. It wasn't Rex's style to be openly distressed about things for long, instead, he hid them, keeping his worries and fears to himself, bottling them up inside so that he wouldn't worry the folks around him.

It was just Rex's way of caring for the people who raised him. Sure, he acted like the resident spunky, raucous and thoughtless kid more than half the time but Noah could see through all his layers, and knew Rex was more selfless and more considerate than he gave himself credit for.

Moreover, on top of coping with crazy things that constantly bombarded his life, no matter what shit came his way, Rex wouldn't crack – he was just that incredibly strong. That was one of the reasons that drew Noah to him, giving him the conviction to stick by Rex for better or worse, through the wild roller coaster of life.

The hours flew by quickly, but Noah wasn't even aware of time passing until Rex's voice floated into the lab.

Rex entered with a black woman –a lieutenant, the rank in proud display on her left sleeve – and took a few steps before he noticed Noah.

"Hey Noah!" Rex called up and hastened his footsteps, coming up to him.

"Hey ya, I see your mission's over," Noah ended on a note of anticipation, expecting to hear the details as per their usual routine.

Rex instinctively knew what Noah really wanted to ask, even though his words said another – such was the understanding they shared from their long and close friendship.

He simply pointed backwards at the Lieutenant with his thumb.

"Best I leave it up to her to relay the details."

The dark skinned woman gave them a curt nod before handling over what looked like some specimen findings to Holiday.

"Dr. Holiday, we found something that we thought you might like to see."

Holiday nodded firmly as she listened, asking a few questions here and there, all serious and business-like.

Noah quietly listened alongside attentively whilst Rex veered off to help himself to some drinks at the little pantry wedged in the far corner of the lab.

"Thanks for your work, Six was right to send you on this mission," Holiday praised at the end, warm smile blossoming across her face, authoritative demeanor all but disappeared.

"Hey, don't forget me," Rex pointed at himself in a pompous manner as he came back, "I helped."

The dark skinned woman grunted lightly and folded her arms.

"Really, you 'helped', you say?"

From the tone of her voice and the pointed look she gave, one could almost guess the events that really transpired. It could have been one of the those times when Rex was a little too zealous and reckless in his actions.

Noah gave a knowing laugh and planted his knuckles on one hip.

"I see, Rex must have given you some trouble, didn't he?"

"Hey! – " Rex protested, shooting Noah an annoyed gaze, but Noah ignored him, continuing on.

"Don't worry, your troubles will end soon. Once I officially join Providence combat ranks, I'll be sure to rein in Rex's crazy antics."

She gave him an amused smile.

"Are you sure? As I recall, you used to join him on his shenanigans."

From her tone of voice, it suggested that she has known Noah personally as well, and not just by rumors. Plus, there was something vaguely familiar about her.

"Sorry for my memory lapse, but have we met?"

She laughed. "Make a guess. We met at basic, six years back."

Recognition dawned in Noah's eyes.

"Right, *Kenwyn, been a long time!" Noah exclaimed, "Wow, you look great!"

Kenwyn gave him a sultry smile with a glint in her eye, with a demoness of an expression passing over her face.

"Compliments won't get you anywhere. Pass your Basic, before you have a shot with me."

Then she turned heel and walked off, cool like an icy panter.

Noah gave Rex a bewildered look.

"What in the world was that about?" he tried to keep his tones low so she wouldn't hear him.

"She's become pretty popular among the guys here," Rex explained, "So she's become kinda feisty. Don't worry though, just keep your hands to yourself and she won't bite."

"Well, that's the first time I'm hearing about it," Noah quirked an amused brow, "Seems like there's still a lot going on here that I don't know about."

"Don't worry," Rex slung an arm over his shoulders and gave an assured smile, "Now that you're here twenty-four-seven, you'll get all the juicy news right off the bat. Now c'mon, do you still have time for a game before your next training?"

"You bet I do," Noah beamed, then turned to Holiday, "Thanks for earlier Holiday, hope you don't mind us continuing this another day. That is, if you don't mind me interrupting your work."

"Anytime, Noah," Holiday smiled and waved them off.

Rex promptly bounded out the lab like an excited puppy, pulling Noah behind him, since it'd been a long time that they could find time to just chill out together, given Noah's crazy packed schedule and Rex's impromptu missions.

Noah was equally eager, since they really hadn't played a game since the start of Noah's Basic. Not that he was completely obsessed with games, but more like whatever time he could spend alone with Rex was priceless.

* * *

An hour flew by quickly before the alarm that Noah set, went off.

"Ah dang! I can't believe I have only another hour left to my break."

"Awe, I'm glad to know you're already missing me," Rex cooed.

Noah gave a sour scowl, directing it at the little robot figure whizzing about in the top half of the split screen in the player-vs-player side-scroller platform game.

"Yea I miss beating you up at this," Noah complained as he furiously thumbed his console controls, "How the hell did you even get to the bonus stage? Did you cheat or what?"

"I can only say practice makes perfect," Rex replied smugly.

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Noah shifted to knock knees with Rex in show of agitation.

"Just you wait, I'm going to beat the crap out of you."

"OoOOoohh, I miss that too," Rex gave a sickening coo.

"Masochist."

"Hey, just patronizing!"

Noah would have rolled his eyes if it weren't that he had to keep his eyes glued to the screen.

At that moment, a thought suddenly came to him.

"Hey speaking of which, I think I'm missing something else too."

"What? Your dignity?"

Noah promptly hit the 'pause' button to freeze the game and lightly smacked Rex's head, earning Rex's cry of protest.

"No you idiot, I mean the room is missing that signature musky, heavy smell of monkey."

"Ah well, Bobo," Rex's voice trailed off a bit before continuing, "He took a looooong leave of absence."

"Since your bro's torture? That's like weeks back! Is there something wrong?"

"Oh you know, a mortally wounded pride is not easy to recover," Rex gave a twisted smile, the tips of his brows angled at just the slightest, enough to tell Noah that he was hiding his worry under his nonchalance.

"Right, but he didn't contact you at all, in all this time?"

"Hello? We're talking about the heartless ape here."

"Oh Rex," Noah began in a soft tone, "Poor thing, you miss him. Well, don't be sad, you know I'm here to keep you company."

Rex grinned.

"I know … at least till your break is over."

"Hey, I was being so nice. Yet how could you bring up such a cruel fact so heartlessly?" Noah mock retorted, arching a brow and getting up.

"Look who's talking? Where are you going?" Rex commented, and Noah thought he heard a bit of panic in his tone.

"Just the loo, what, don't tell me we need to hook arms while taking a piss?" Noah managed a half smirk before noticing Rex's face scrunched up in an odd manner.

"Give it another minute man, let's finish this round first."

Noah gave him a questioning look.

"Wow, are you my nursery teacher or something? Since when do I need your permission to go pee?"

Rex set his controller on his thighs and stretched an arm, catching Noah's palm and tugging it.

"C'mon, you know I hate to stop a game halfway."

Noah rolled his eyes.

"Alright. Whatever you say."

Another thirty minutes and two rounds later, Noah still has yet to relieve himself and he could wait no more.

"Fuck this shit, I gotta go!" Noah cried, shooting up.

"What's the rush, just another ten more minutes."

"What's the rush is that Niagara is going to make a basin over your floor!" Noah barked rather unceremoniously.

It was ridiculous the way Rex refused to let him go relieve himself so Noah couldn't help wondering if something was up.

As Noah strode five steps to the door, he thought he caught Rex's barely audible sigh.

Then the moment Noah exited the room and turned towards the corridor, it dawned on him the reason why Rex was trying to stop him.

It was too fucking brazen! – two officers coddling along the wall outside the next room, masculine bodies plastered together from their mouths to their hands in their pants.

It was rude to stare and Noah knows in his head he should about turn and take the long way around to the men's room before the couple notices his presence. However, he was too late.

One of the guys turned his head a bit more sideways, revealing Nathan's face, his devilish smirk and damn his infuriating haughty gaze.

Tch, Noah cursed inwardly, bit his lips and fled, retreating into Rex's room.

"So, was the scenery nice?"

Noah was not in the mood for his cheeky taunts.

He stomped towards the Hispanic and bent over to grip his collar, shaking him lightly.

"You knew they were outside yet you didn't tell me?"

Rex didn't take Noah's fuming seriously, simply grinning wider.

"Look, I tried to stop you, didn't I? And why are you so red? It's not like you're a preschooler are you."

"Geez, no but it's not like I wanna walk in on that!"

Noah let Rex off and kneaded his forehead instead, wishing he hadn't seen that, right out of coming out of Rex's room.

For some reason, it was unnerving that Rex purposely didn't warn him even though he was fully aware of…

Noah's thoughts ran into a halt, tripping over itself.

"Wait a sec, so for the last half hour you tried to stop me from going out because you knew two guys were outside sucking faces?"

"Yup, I would have put it quite as eloquently if I had known how to," Rex confirmed and leaned backwards, bracing his palms on the floor. "I thought they needed their privacy, you know?"

"Right, but how did you know exactly? You were sitting here with me this whole time."

"I heard them," Rex shrugged like it was the most normal thing.

As far as Noah knew, Providence rooms were all soundproof, so Rex couldn't have heard them if Noah didn't.

"Heard what? Their slurping and heavy breathing?" Noah exclaimed, "I couldn't even hear them moan!"

Rex laughed.

"Well duh, you don't have super hearing."

"And you do?" Noah was flabbergasted.

"Yea, I do. Why do you look so shocked? I thought you knew."

"The hell I do!" Noah nearly shouted.

How could he be buddies with Rex for almost eight years and not know?

"Well, I have like, super vision. So it stands to reason that I'll have super hearing too."

"Right, so what else you got, shooting lasers out your eyes?"

"Hmm, does this count?" Rex opened his palms to Noah, quickly morphing his hands into various weapons that could shoot lasers.

"Right, anything else that you should add, Superman?"

"What? I'm better than that red underwear guy," Rex wagged his brows. "I shoot electricity, I'm fast and I'm totally my own automobile and weapons builder, and I – "

"Ok, right right, you're a one man superhero team," Noah interrupted, "I know that. Just funny, I must have missed out the super hearing part."

"You totally did, but I forgive you," Rex got up and patted Noah's shoulders, completely ignoring his sarcasm. "It's easy to miss out on all my greatness."

Noah gave a bland smile, irked that he didn't know. He ran his mind over and over but couldn't recall Rex's super hearing as being known fact.

"Yea, so great that even Holiday missed it."

"Well yea, it wasn't a big deal really. I might have only mentioned it as a passing comment."

"Which means you said like it was a joke," Noah specified, noting that it was more likely the case.

He could imagine himself passing it off as a joke too since Rex liked to bullshit and exaggerate most of the time.

"So, if you're done vexing over my greatness, shouldn't you hurry to the loo? Or have you plugged your bladder?"

Noah gave him the evil eye.

"Are they done with their hanky panky?"

"I don't think so. But we can take the shortcut."

At Noah's questioning gaze, Rex strode to the large window and pressed some decal at the side.

Noah's jaw dropped when the window slide open.

"My other exit," Rex announced, making a sweeping flourish with his arms like a butler.

"Since when?"

"Since the renovation."

Noah went up to him and elbowed his side.

"Could have told me sooner."

"Ouch!" Rex complained, "Sheesh you're so violent."

"What's the big deal with two guys kissing anyway? You should be used to it already- oofhp!" Rex cried out as Noah attacked him in the same spot.

"I only have three words for that, T.P.O'. Now hurry and get your turbines out. Or do you prefer me to make a mess on your floor?"

"Alright, alright," Rex grumbled then barely crouched on the ledge before jumping off, a pair of smaller than usual turbine wings ejected from his back so fast that he barely dipped.

"One trip to the loo, step right up," Rex hovered close to the ledge and beckoned Noah over, arms held wide open.

"Better make that express!" Noah grumbled as he climbed up the windows.

"Yikes, testy, aren't you?" Rex made a face. "Well, you should get used to it Noah, because some guys get pretty desperate, you know, being cooped up in here for long periods."

Ankles suddenly unsteady, Noah half stumbled as he stepped towards Rex, and would have dived headlong into his death several floors down, if Rex was not there to block his fall.

"Woa there! Shit! Careful Noah!"

Noah ended up butting his head into Rex's chest. Rex's arms went around his shoulders and back in a firm grip, holding him steady.

"Sheesh you rushing to pee or rushing to die?"

Noah had no come back for Rex's sarcasm.

Rex's previous sentence echoed inside his mind, travelling from his cranium down his spine, causing his head to pound and the hairs at the back of his neck to stand.

"Wait, you don't mean…" Noah trailed off, facing downward in his hunched position, unable to say the words that ran in his head.

How could it be? So Rex knew about the other officers fooling around?

At Rex's sudden, uncharacteristic silence, Noah dared a peek upwards.

It was Rex's turn to blush, tanned cheeks turning into a rosy plum.

Noah felt a giddiness settling in, probably from his posture, so he straightened slowly, face coming across just inches from Rex's.

"You mean to say Providence guys typically fool around together like this?" Noah tried again, words coming out a bit gritty from his dry throat.

Rex cleared his throat.

"Uh, yea, guess you can say that," Rex averted his gaze, scratching one side of his forehead, a little awkward, "Guess I forgot to mention, but this sort of thing happens once in every while."

Hearing it, Noah found it hard to suddenly swallow. Did he even hear right? His best friend actually knew about this for god knows how long.

"Have you've known this for long?"

Rex shrugged. "Since forever, I guess."

Noah's eyes balled.

"You mean even as a kid!" Noah could almost feel bile rising. "This is fucking insane! What kind of irresponsible adults –"

"It's not like that Noah. I mean, they were careful not to be seen, but like I said, I hear stuff."

"Hear stuff," Noah repeated blandly, still struggling to swallow that piece of information, which went down his throat like stale bread.

Dozens of questions ran through his head. Like what kind of stuff – lewd, totally inappropriate and forbidden stuff – that might have reached unbidden, to his ears since his precarious youth.

"So how good's your hearing?" Noah heard himself ask instead.

"Well, like if I'm in the room, I could still hear noises about three doors down the corridor. Even from within the rooms, but only if I focus."

 _No wonder_ , Rex took the news of Noah's sexuality as calm as a breeze rolling over spring daffodils in the highlands.

Growing up within these white walls with little privy from his hearing, Rex was no stranger to the notions of skin-ship with one's fellow man.

It probably explained why Rex could kiss him without retching, and also why he would see it as nothing out of the ordinary between best friends.

Noah was thankful, of course, for Rex's open-mindedness, but it also became a bitter realization that made Noah's gut twist up all funny inside.

Regardless, not wanting to agonize over it in Rex's presence, Noah forced down his sour thoughts.

"Right, good to know your superior hearing and the all the hanky panky knowledge you've gleamed. Best you get me off safely and hold up to your reputation of being fast," Noah forced himself to joke, though his voice sounded a tad too bland.

"Who said I have a reputation for being _fast_?"

Noah blinked at Rex, who blinked back. Nary two seconds later, Rex's eyes widened in shock over realizing the mistake he had just made with his words.

"Uh-uh-uh, I mean, sorry, that came out wrong," Rex stuttered and spun around, as if trying to hide his embarrassment from Noah.

Noah felt like a stone settled into the pits of his belly as he stared at the reddened tips of Rex's ears.

 _Idiot, why'd you have to be so embarrassed?_ Noah screamed internally. Even if Rex had mistaken Noah's words and made a dirty assumption, it wasn't like him to be blushing and facing away like preteen as if he hadn't made a million other dirty jokes before.

Something… something was hidden in between Noah's lines and Rex's reaction that gnawed at Noah like a green-eyed demon.

"Best you get on my back," Rex suggested plainly, shifting his small turbines upwards over his shoulders, freeing up the space for Noah to cling onto.

Noah barely grunted as he stepped up to Rex's back and wrapped his arms round his chest for support. He thought he could feel Rex's heart hammering rapidly beneath his palms, but he had no desire to know why Rex was in such a state of panic.

For Noah was sure that if there was truly some hidden, dark story to it, and he came to learn it, his heart would likely freeze over and shatter.

* * *

The weeks flew by in a rush, such that if Noah were to look back at his training on fast mode, he would reel from the whirlwind of muscle grinding, grueling activities.

On the flip side, now at the end of the third month, Noah can truly say that he has fully assimilated into the life of a Providence cadet. His mind and body has gotten used to the haphazard sleeping hours, always waking up the dot without feeling lethargic. His stamina and core strength has improved greatly, able to withstand physical training longer without experiencing muscle fatigue. The many varied trials and training became a lot more manageable, and he secretly even enjoyed them, as if he had become addicted to the intense action, body accustomed to accepting muscle burn as the norm.

Besides that, Noah has also gotten a lot closer with many of his fellow cadets. As what Matthew and Nathan had said, it turned out that the golden drop out ratio was pretty accurate. About less than half of the cohort remained, so the activities often combined two platoons, and rotated so frequently that Noah had the opportunity to train and mingle with each and every one of the trainees.

Working and training hard together, having meals and chit chat in the showers, the canteen and the bunks or when they passed by each other on Providence grounds, Noah felt a certain sense of unity and belonging that was stronger than that of the camaraderie between his friends back in his basketball team and drama troupe back in college.

Especially since besides their daily interactions and knowing more about one another, they shared a common goal to protect people, and also EVOs. They may come from all walks of life, but almost all, shared similar reasons that motivated them to make the decision of joining Providence.

Many, lost a loved one in the chaotic period, and drew strength from the loss to help others. Like Ronny, who wanted to help other EVOs because of his ex-wife who turned EVO, but alas, lost her life as one. Tio, was another example, who wanted to protect others from being hurt by rampaging EVOs, since his grandparents, whom he was extremely close with since they raised him from young instead of his parents, was unfortunately caught in the fray of EVO attacks.

Others, were inspired to play their part to help after witnessing the courageous help offered to them by other Providence officers. It was similar to Noah, who was motivated by Rex's courageous and self- sacrificing deeds.

Asides from that, it wasn't just the training officers like Hutton, Captain Calan and the other instructors who paid attention to the trainees. The combat officers in general, all seemed to know the cadets by name, as many would randomly chat with Noah and the rest, sharing their experiences and giving tips. It was as if the entire combat division was watching over the trainees, paying attention to the incoming soldiers who would be joining their ranks, and in effect, their daily lives. It made Noah feel a part of something bigger, like invisible threads connected them, and even the smallest rank like the cadet, was equally important.

It was almost uplifting, to discover the reality of life here that was different from his previous lack of understanding, from back in those days when he stayed over to accompany Rex in between every few months. Even though he was already somewhat quite familiar with Providence since he'd often stayed over with Rex on weekends and such, to the extend that his parents joked it was like his second home, the term never really appealed to Noah or reached his heart. To him, staying over had the meaning of 'sleeping over at the work place of his best friend.'

He mistakenly thought Bobo, Six and Holiday were the only ones Rex counted as family, because he nearly only ever talked about them. Moreover, whenever Noah came over for sleepovers, Rex exclusively hung around Noah only so he rarely saw Rex interacting with the others.

But now that he was here twenty-four seven and seen how Rex interacted with the folks here in between the days and hours, he suddenly realized that even though Rex jokingly called Providence a 'prison' that was his home, he overlooked the fact that Rex really did in his heart, called this, his ' _home_.'

Because when Rex talked to the others, it seemed like he knew everyone, not just by name or recognition, but some of their preferences, their interests, their common habits and pet peeves and even their lives, friends and families outside of Providence walls.

It was little wonder why Rex didn't choose to live outside of this place. After the Worldwide Cure, Holiday and Six actually convinced White Knight and gave Rex the option of staying in his own apartment in the nearest city. Of course, the rent and living expenses would still be fully covered by Providence, and he would still be on standby call at any time of the day. Noah remembered jumping at the idea enthusiastically, and because he was choosing his college at that time, he wanted to bunk with Rex and choose a school at that city. However, Rex was strangely against the idea, brushing it off, much to Noah's puzzlement and dismay. They even had a small argument about it, because Rex couldn't give a good enough reason for not wanting it, vexing Noah to no end. In the end, Noah just respected Rex's decision without understanding why he made such a befuddling and maddening choice when he had often lamented about Providence being a prison. Furthermore, later on, when Noah started college, Rex escaped to his dorm room more frequently, going over nearly every few weeks, which strengthened Noah's belief that Rex didn't like being in Providence, and was only there as obligation to his responsibility.

Yet since his Basic training, seeing Rex going about his daily life here, Noah gradually came to the realization that as much as Rex appeared to keep it at arm's length, his heartstrings were devotedly tied to it like the strings of on a guitar. The echoes of Rex's feelings and sentiments tied to this place, silently permeated within Providence walls, which in actual fact, radiated warmth and closeness, for the organization was after all, full of individuals with caring and strong hearts. It was only now, living as one of them, that Noah could see that.

And he was thankful for it, relieved that the rumors and horror stories by word-of-mouth and on the online forums about military life was not fully accurate. There was no bullying or harassment, from what Noah saw. Jokes were rampant yes, perhaps some a bit overboard, with the occasional spats and quarrels, but nothing so serious as to warrant a complaint to the Discipline committee. Though of course, there were still pockets of officers who were rather standoffish and unfriendly, like Andrew and his gang, there was no violent roughing around. In fact, Providence boosts the highest rating of cordiality and unity amongst officers, compared to the other defense and military services in the country. There was little discrimination reports and little dispute filings, which was one of the factors that Noah considered before applying for Providence service.

Hence, with each passing day, Noah became more confident in his skills and performance as an officer, and also appreciated more of the friendships and bonds he would form here, and the folks around who cared about one other.

In another month, Basic would end, and coming close to the last leg of training, there was only really one last hurdle to face.

Sitting at the canteen with Ronny, Tio and a few other cadets, everyone couldn't help but contemplate their future, which would be decided on their performance at the Final Exam.

"So tell me, is silver decal on my coffin better, or gold?"

Tio joked in cold humor, prompting Noah to shake his head and laugh.

"For the last time, Tio, no one is gonna die."

"Then where does the 0.3% fatality report come from?"

Noah couldn't refute that, but whilst he thought of what to say, Sarah, one of best performing cadets, spoke.

"You're worrying needlessly. Just make sure you're not the 0.3%"

"That's easy for you to say! You're a pro at this," Tio argued.

Sarah, a drool-worthy model-like blonde quirked a disagreeing brow that didn't match her soft, doe features.

"Yea, but we go through the same training, don't we? So just pull up your socks. There's no magic trick to it."

The bicker that followed was the common sight that had been happening recently. It should be quite problematic to have fellow cadets squabbling, so Noah felt guilty that he secretly found it quite entertaining. Especially since Sarah managed to tick off the usually cheerful and cordial Tio in a way that no one else could.

It was funny seeing Tio's cheeks puffed up like an agitated hamster, tips of his ears gone red like a spiteful, fire elf.

Sarah wasn't mean, but she doesn't mince words either, and usually shoots straight in a curt tone. Hence, not just Tio, several others found her rather cold and uptight, and unsympathetic to their struggles. Noah, on the other hand, has had enough opportunities observing her.

Sarah was determined, tough, and carried a serious attitude in everything she did. That was why over the weeks as training got more challenging, Sarah was one of the remaining sixty odd cadets who progressed so well, she steadily climbed up the ranks, interchanging with Ronny and Noah on the top three spots (not that he was really keeping tabs).

Even right off the bat, at the early classroom instructions, she had already revealed having studied Providence past cases on open net, showing she was well prepared and made every effort to perform well.

On the flip side, she could be a little too serious, which gave many the impression that she was stoic and unfriendly. Even when conversing with their fellow cadets, she was no-nonsense, curt and replied straight as an arrow.

Which was why she often rubbed Tio up the wrong way, but then again, Noah had an inkling for another reason why his usually bright and cheerful friend gets ruffled so easily by her…

Noah snapped back to the chatter flying around when he heard Ronny's words of uncertainty.

Noah forced back a grimace, not wanting to add to the gloom and doom.

Even someone like Ronny, an ex-cop used to dangers and daily strife, was unusually stressed about the Final EVO exam.

"Hey guys, no sweat, we've already passed the first EVO combat trials, didn't we?" Noah finally added, trying to allay their worries. "So this should be easy enough for us to manage as well. Just apply everything that we have learnt and trained so far."

"I like your optimism, chap. But it'd be no walk in the park."

Noah received a lightly clap on the back at the same time that Jackson's voice dropped overhead.

Turning around, he sees the lieutenant who must have walked passed their table to have overheard. Right next to him, were Matthew and Cody, who nodded solemnly in agreement.

"That's right. That first battle you faced in the cage – that was only a trial. Just to scare the newbies and weed out the cowards." Matthew added. "You have to be prepared that the Final Exam will be a lot tougher."

Noah nearly made a face-palm at their comments. So much for damage control.

His cadet mates all shifted nervously on the bench, giving each other uneasy pointed looks.

"Jackson Sir," Sarah began then paused, and sort of shuffled in her seat, as if hesitating if she should stand up and give an official salute.

"Do you have any advice for us then? I think it will be a big help."

Jackson crossed his arms and replied in a firm matter.

"Think fast, act fast, but don't act in a moment's panic and be overly hasty. Always catch the opportune moment.

Watch your back and watch your footing. Preplan a few routes and defense points so that you have a safe place to retreat to.

If you can't face the EVO head on, go round and attack it from the side or behind."

Sarah looked thoughtful awhile before replying.

"Sound advice, but I have some concerns how erring on the cautious side will result in a lower score."

Tio dropped his fork, along with his jaw. Their fellow cadets copied him as if they were a practiced comedy troupe.

"We're going into a real EVO battle and all you are concerned with, is how much points you'll get?" Tio exclaimed in disbelief, staring at her crossly.

Jackson on the other hand, didn't seem bothered by her question like the others.

He simply cocked his head slightly. "Not if your defense is solid."

"True, 'strategic defense' is one of the markers we are graded, alongside 'offence'. But if we take the initiative and lead the attack, don't we get a mark down since an aggressive stance means that we have to compromise on defense?"

Jackson and the other two experienced combat officers nodded like they understood where she was coming from. However, Matthew and Cody remained silent, letting their team leader speak.

"I see you are concerned with the conflicts in the scoring system. I admit it is not as straightforward. 'Risk' is determined by the amount of danger you put yourself in while disregarding your 'safety.' This is what mainly constitutes to a deduction in points. The weightage vary depending on situation and performance.

However, if you can take up 'active lead' whilst maintaining strong 'defense', you will score well. Ultimately, it all boils down to tactics and how well you can accomplish your mission safely within your parameters. Don't try to be a hero if you can't."

"In other words, let me be the hero."

Rex's words dropped in suddenly, earning the turns of all heads at the table.

He popped up on Jackson's other side with a haughty smirk that Noah was sure must have ticked off dime a dozen officers in his career.

"You're irrelevant in this case since you are excluded from our final exam," Sarah said pointedly in a straight face, so Noah couldn't be sure if she was being sarcastic.

Nonetheless, it earned a tiny scowl from his Hispanic friend.

"Hey, who says I'm irrelevant? I the guy who – oopfh!"

Jackson clapped Rex so hard on the back that he bowed over.

"Well, well, looks like this lady here sure knows how to put you in your place!" Jackson continued clapping Rex's back in between boisterous laughs.

Noah chuckled at the sight of Rex winching under Jackson's heavy hand. There was no undermining the lieutenant's strength on seeing his uniform stretched taut over well-muscled forearms. Regardless, Rex probably exaggerated his misery to comedic levels, prompting the trainees to snicker, loosing up their tension.

"Sarah, right?" Jackson asked and finally let Rex off, at which the look of relief on the latter's face, was so hilarious that Noah missed not being able to take a snap shot of it – he was sure he would get a laugh out of it for ages.

But as Sarah nodded in confirmation, Jackson continued, and the cadets quickly resumed somber expressions.

"Don't forget, team work plays a major role as well. If you and your team covered attack and defense positions well enough, you'll have greater success securing the EVOs or completing the mission that you have."

"Can I add something?" Rex piped up when it looked like Jackson was done.

"Go right ahead."

"Most importantly, when it gets too rough, know when to fall back. It could turn things around."

Needless to say, all of the cadets widened their eyes and stared at Rex with frightening, disapproving bat-like stares in a cave when light shone on them.

"Funny you should say that, when I thought 'retreat' isn't in your dictionary." Sarah shot, her tone this time, unmistakably acid.

"Nope, it isn't," Jackson suddenly answered before Rex could reply, but when it looked like he was going to chide Rex, he said instead. "But he's an EVO. You're not."

The look that Sarah then gave, was so acidic, it could be enough to melt metal.

* * *

Tio threw his arms around Noah whilst crying out lines of despair like a soap opera.

The team allocation for the Final Exam was out, and Tio was literally crying in anguish that he was placed in the same group as Sarah, disregarding the fact that said woman was standing just right in front of them, checking out the bulletin alongside a group of other cadets.

"Wow, dramatic, aren't you? Are you sure you haven't been in an acting club?" Noah joked, albeit awkwardly, trying to lessen the tension he could feel strangling the air around them.

He could swear he saw a vein along Sarah's nape pull taut as Tio continued his drama fest, seemingly clueless about the ice queen, or rather, Velociraptor Venus-flytrap being so close to him.

When she whipped around, Noah almost half expected her to bend over Tio with giant ravenous teeth and chomp him down into her acidic bowels.

"What a pain for me too. You best make sure you don't get in my way and hold me back."

Ahh, no need for devouring then, since it was just as enough to spit out her acidic gut, which she demonstrated painfully well when she continued insulting Tio.

At first, Tio jumped a bit, frightened like a cat and taken back on realizing she was just there. Then he quickly boiled, looking like sparks were jumping out his skin, shaking visibly in anger.

Sarah's tirade was so galling to hear, that it might make Tio's much adored, dead grandparents to jump up from their graves to haunt the 'witch' who dared to verbally wound their precious grandson.

"Hey, c'mon Sarah, lay it off. That's too much." A fellow cadet stopped her, lightly tapping her shoulder.

"Buzz off. I'm not going on your case, am I? Or do you want me to?"

"Don't go overboard, Sarah," came a woman's warning tone, "No personal attacks on comrades. You don't want to be reported to Discipline CI, do you?"

Even without looking, Noah recognized that firm, velvety voice anywhere.

Kenwyn stood by the sides of the crowd, watching her with a stern gaze. Sarah stopped abruptly, jaws snapped shut but looking pissed off like she was unhappy at not getting a bite out of her prey.

By then the other cadets had given her a wide berth, giving her disapproving and hostile looks. She flinched ever so slightly as if just realizing that, prompting Noah to feel sorry for her upon catching onto her vulnerability.

He knew it was all the fault of nerves and stress that pushed Sarah into this self-destructing monster.

Over the last few weeks, she quickly spiraled from the 'cool, ice queen' to the loathsome, Velociraptor carnivorous plant eater who would take a bite out of anyone unlucky enough to even so much as glance her way. The critique flying behind her back was not pretty, as evident as the harsh murmurs quickly erupting amongst the cadets even when Sarah was still in plain sight among them.

However, proud as she was, Sarah wasn't going to apologize even if the crowd expected it. She merely bit the corners of her lips and stalked off, elbowing her way through the crowd.

Eyes following her back, Noah debated going after her when he caught sight of Rex at the edge of the crowd.

Noah guessed Rex was probably here to check out who he was teaming with, and reached in time to watch Miss Acid erupt in a volcanic mess. Rex had eyes wide as when he was perplexed and helpless listening to White Knight unfairly hammer down on Providence officers.

The moment their eyes met, Noah just knew they had the same thought running through their minds – they could sympathize Sarah because she reminded them of someone they knew.

And that very person was staring after Sarah and shaking her head.

In a little while, Kenwyn returned her attention to the cadets.

"Alright people, *Wade has asked me to sit in your tactical simulation today, and we're starting it early. You have thirty minutes to prep yourselves because I won't go easy on you, got it?"

A flurry of movement and chorus followed.

"Yes Mam!"

In the midst of it of it, Noah and Rex both went over to Kenwyn's side like they could read each other's mind.

Rex was the first to speak, and he went straight for it.

"She's a feisty one, isn't it? She sorta reminds me of somebody we know, don't you think?"

Kenwyn gave him a long sideways glance, but didn't deny the meaning behind his words.

"Maybe you should talk to her," Rex added.

Kenwyn turned and started walking away, softly throwing her thoughts over her shoulder.

"She won't listen."

"You know there's a chance that she might burn," Rex said grimly.

They walked in pace with her as she continued.

"Then let her crash and burn. Once she bombs her first battle, she'll know where she went wrong."

"Yea, but isn't that risky for her teammates? I mean if she can't keep a level head."

"Maybe, but you'll be on standby wouldn't you?"

"Of course! You know I have to." Rex seemed appalled that she would suggest otherwise, giving Noah a nagging feeling on what their conversation meant.

"Good." she nodded. "Then there's no need to worry."

Rex stopped before turning the corridor, and Noah followed suit, leaving the lieutenant to walk on her own, seeing as to the conversation ended.

Noah tried to catch Rex's gaze, staring at him with questioning eyes. However, Rex averted his gaze, confirming Noah's suspicion and fear that the final EVO combat assessment might actually be more dangerous than what the trainees could handle.

* * *

Kenwyn and Wade –a petite but well-muscled black woman –circled the lecture hall in opposing directions in astute fashions. They swept sharp gazes across the cadets, looking like predatory panthers circling their prey.

At this stage where it was so close to the Final exam, Noah was surprised that instead of going for a practical simulation exercise on actual grounds, the two instructors opted for a theory session within the classroom.

Wade started the session by depicting the setting with minimum cues.

A warehouse, with fluorescent lights off, with light from the setting sun filtering through windows on opposite sides along the mid-section of the walls. Visibility fair. A team of twelve to enter.

The cadets then had to voice their choice of action, to which the instructors would respond, adding to the simulation.

It was almost like a story telling session where everyone could add their own to weave into the scenario. Having been in drama school, Noah was no stranger to improv, and would have found this pretty fun and enjoyable, if it were not for the serious and stern demeanors of the two tough instructors assessing them.

The first to start was the cadet right at the front corner.

"Checking parameters for abnormalities."

"None detected. No EVO sightings or sounds," Wade responded, nodding her head in approval at the good starting.

"Visual cues," she went on, "Freight containers forward twenty meters, stacked three in a column, visual block from ten through one o'clock. Pillars eight, double crossed, spread evenly."

Never mind that there weren't any visual aids to depict Wade's narrative, since this session of tactical simulation was all about imagination.

"Moving in to check the containers," the next cadet said, describing in detail on the staggered formation the team should take.

"Halfway point, scratching sounds are heard from the container," Wade warned.

"All halt," the next cadet called, "East and West points to take corner shots at freight top, to sound off EVOs. Central body puncture must be avoided to avoid bodily harm."

Wade gave a firm nod of approval before responding.

"No response from container."

"Team to carry on moving."

"Movement on west side of container. EVO retreats after confirmed sighting."

"Team to split – east and west to circle in from opposite sides, on the double," the next cadet continued without a hitch.

"One West Point shot on left shoulder from sixty degrees top. EVO spikes are tinged with a nerve paralyzing poison. Unable to block in time, so down he goes. EVO dashes down west."

A couple of brows quickly rose at the unexpected turn.

The next cadet became more cautious, calling for appropriate Tail Points to guard and defend while Forward Points take on the EVO.

"EVO goes down. Second EVO appears from the east side of the freight containers."

"Team maintains guard. East Points to gun for it."

"EVO shields itself. Sustains mild damage. Retreats behind containers."

The cadet who was next in turn, paused awhile in contemplation, before assigning some Support to remain and keep watch in case of overhead freight appearance.

"No! All to give chase. Round the back of containers!" Sarah, who was next, called out, tone lightly edged with frenzy.

Frowning, the cadet next to her hurriedly continued. "Back supports –"

"East, seventy degrees from the top, shots rain down. Multiple hits –" Wade cut in before he could finish.

"Back support defends! Defends!" he rushed to finish.

"Defense coverage not quick enough – down three casualties."

"Ruling misplaced!" Sarah refuted, "Tail guards enough to –"

"Not quick enough," Kenwyn reiterated, tone hard, "Argument invalid."

Sarah shut up instantly, but looked pissed.

A few cadets flinched, others squared their jaw.

"Defense to tighten while Forwards to confirm EVO positions and take them out."

"Range inaccurate. Failed to hit EVOs."

Tensions climbed, hanging thick over the entire class as the situation rapidly spiraled for the worst as the simulation went through the first and second rows. Noah was seated at center of the class roughly five rows back, but the simulation didn't even reach close to him. Once Wade marked all members of the twelve-man team as injured, the class had to do-over.

His classmates on the third and fourth row started out with more prudence, but they quickly bombed as well, making a couple of wrong calls.

Many were not happy with the results, and those who have passed their turn or were still waiting, started murmuring amongst themselves in discussion.

More started protesting at their instructors' verdict, but it was always overruled.

It appeared as if the elements kept changing, imaginative scenario ever evolving based on Wade's and Kenwyn's input. The EVO appearances for instance, were not consistent. They mostly popped out from behind the containers. But a few times, Wade would indicate the hits coming from a direction that wasn't anywhere near the containers at all.

It led Noah to ponder if Wade and Kenwyn were dead set in deliberately failing all of them no matter what course of action they took.

However, there was something in the ingenuity of this method of instruction that compelled Noah to analyze the simulation deeper.

By the time it was his turn, he realized one crucial element that everyone had missed thus far.

"Forwards to hold on advance. Instead, will shoot light flares towards the ceiling in four directions."

As soon as the words left him, he knew he made the right call when just the tiniest smile peeked from the lips of both instructors.

Noah felt like a scientist who had found the Eureka to his investigations.

"EVO nest sighted on ceiling beams in close radius to the containers. Multiple EVOs are clearly seen."

A mild chorus rose from his classmates, some astonished, and others in disbelief. It died down quickly as the simulation continued down the row, until the cadets completed the mission successfully.

"Not too bad," Wade acknowledged, and made a pointed nod at Noah, dark pupils shining with praise. "But you guys could still brush up on your critical thinking."

"I see your dissatisfied looks," she continued noting aloud when she caught the cadets exchanging glances with one another. "In what way does this method of instruction not satisfy you?"

"Pardon my impudence, Mam, but why are we going back to theory when we should be out there, running through an actual, physical simulation? Wouldn't that be better?" Sarah immediately questioned, tone challenging in a way that told the instructors that she wasn't going to back down even if Wade and Kenwyn were ranked officers.

Wade's chest rose rapidly, looking like she was going to blast Sarah, and Noah knew it wasn't going to be pretty. She had always been quite cool and though she was strict, she wasn't the type to bark at cadets the way Hutton does. However, rumors went that when she does holler, she could make Hutton's barking sound like a puppy's whine.

Luckily, Kenwyn patted a hand on Wade's shoulder as if to relay that she would handle the situation, so Wade held back and took a step backward.

"Because this is the basics of strategic thinking that can be applied across any situation. You have to be meticulous in analyzing your situation from all angles, especially those details that are not so apparent."

"What is there to analyze when you can't see the actual place or object?" Sarah refuted, citing the biggest shortfall of this method of instruction. The very ambiguity of the location and physical elements make it trying.

"Well then, shall we hear from the one who had made the crucial turning point in the earlier simulation?"

Noah shifted in his seat whilst the entire class followed Kenwyn's gaze and fell on him.

Clearing his throat, Noah began his rationale.

Wade had actually dropped vital clues right at the start. Since she depicted the warehouse as having pillars in the middle of the warehouse flooring, there would have to be beams and a high ceiling. Moreover, since the windows were only along the mid sections of two walls, and given that the sun was close to setting, the angle of the light filtering in would not be enough to light up the beams at the ceiling. Hence, the reason why firing light flares was crucial for the team to accurately locate the EVOs, which positioned within the darkness of the beams, were otherwise unseen.

Wade nodded in satisfaction when he was done.

"It's good that the rest of you guessed the EVOs were above. But since visibility of the beams are low, you are assumedly shooting blind when you aim above."

Sarah spoke out again, still unconvinced. She argued that if it were an actual run, they would have seen that the ceilings were dark, and would have fired light flares the way Noah stated. The problem here, was that words were not enough to feed the whole picture.

"Would you really?" Wade questioned, keeping a cool face.

"If you have to be reliant on your sight to plan your strategy, then the role of a recon becomes redundant. Because if you realize, most of the info they bring back to us, are just 'words.' And neither Six nor Calan could have planned for any of Providence missions."

Noah could see Sarah straighten in realization, as did several others.

Her words were also justification why she was entrusted to helm the tactical minds of the Providence cadet.

Wade had come a long way in her Providence career. From what Noah has heard, she held staff sergeant rank for the longest time, then suddenly accelerated up the ranks, landing herself a significant position as a ranked instructor for Tactical Theory and Strategy.

"The best strategist makes use of every bit of info given. As long as you remember this, you will succeed your Final Exam just fine," Wade assured.

* * *

"It's official!" Noah announced proudly, coming up to Rex after the end of the Induction ceremony.

He struck a pose fronting his left sleeve, showing his rank as an official, providence agent. He had an additional pin on his left chest, awarded for being the best performing cadet – not that he really cared, nonetheless, it was something he was still proud of.

"Congrats Noah, you just blew your one way ticket to fame and fortune in Hollywood for a death sentence," came that familiar, gruff voice lined with the perfect dosage of sarcasm. "Good choice."

Recognizing that voice all too well, Noah called aloud before he spun round.

"Bobo!" he gushed, then was taken back by Bobo's new look, even though he had already heard from Rex about the horror tale. Still, he hadn't exactly wrapped his head around the idea of a completely hairless Bobo. It was a little strange – no scratch that – completely strange to see Bobo with fur so short.

"Wow," Noah breathed, not quite able to hide the astonishment from his tone, "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes! Nice hair cut."

"Oh, believe me, he looks ten times more fucking handsome now," Rex took it as a cue for his jibes, "Two months ago before he disappeared, he _really_ was a sight for – "

Bobo planted a fist into Rex's stomach before he could finish his sentence, causing him to bow over in pain.

Noah resisted the urge to say something sarcastic least he receives the same gift from Bobo.

"I mean, I'm touched! You came back from your holiday just for my graduation? Aww… Monkey, you shouldn't have!"

Noah almost hugged Bobo, but stopped himself in time when he remembered that the sour fruit didn't do hugs.

"Right – anyway what was I saying before that?" Rex coughed a bit, winded from the ape's punch, "Oh yea! He's completely crazy!" Rex pointed at Noah before waving his arms around in an exaggerated manner. "Whatever happened to wanting to have 'lights, camera and action?"

"Well, what can I say? I can't let you hog all the superhero limelight to yourself," Noah gave a casual shrug. "Besides, I'm still going to get a lot of action."

Noah punched his fists, knuckle to knuckle.

Kenwyn suddenly laughed from behind Rex and rested her elbow on Rex's shoulder.

"Well Noah, you're going to have to compete with Action Man over here," she joked as she squeezed Rex's biceps.

"Well, Mam," Noah began, eyeing her hand on Rex's arm, a bit thrown off by her sudden, uncharacteristic action. "I think I can top that."

Kenwyn gave what looked like a sultry smile.

"We'll see," she said, and cast a pointed look at Rex, giving Noah an odd feeling.

"Kenwyn," Shadow suddenly called, coming up to join them, "Did you hear? Intel department have been saying that Interpol has requested for Providence's help on a mission. Sounds serious."

Shadow looked severe, as usual, almost like a second Six. Kenwyn cocked her head sideways and lifted a brow.

"Yea, I heard the gossip mongers. They're apparently goading with joy that Interpol is finally groveling at our feet. Not sure how much of that is true."

"Well, it's affirmative, my sources say the Chief of Interpol himself, had called in and specifically requested to speak to White Knight. And there's even talk that they want Providence to mobilize a large force."

"Really?" Kenwyn said in surprise and straightened, expression turning as solemn as Shadow's. "Well, that's a surprise. Considering how they've always snatched our cases and dissed our muscle. It must be something really big."

As the two lieutenants went on talking, Bobo made a dramatic, fake yawn, while Noah stared between them with a puzzled face, trying to catch on.

Rex nudged Noah's side. "For your info, this happens rather frequently –Providence and Interpol usually take turns to bulldoze each other. Everyone here knows that."

Noah gave an amused smile as he recollected some of the past incidents.

"Well, that explains it. No wonder White Knight was flaming gas from his seat about making him lose face to Interpol. I kept wondering what about us busting the nanite patch trading ring that had anything to do with them."

"Right, you're the one who took the ring down with Rex," Shadow said pointedly, as if he suddenly noticed him. "That's right, you did well, even before any proper training."

Shadow nodded in approval and held out his hand.

"That said, congratulations on making Top Cadet. You deserve it. "Thank you, Sir," Noah replied, beaming instantly, and shook his hand.

"You've especially impressed me with your combat skills – great footwork you have," Shadow continued his praise.

"Wow, thank you. But I've still got lots more to improve. So hopefully you can continue to show me your guidance, whenever time permits."

Shadow nodded.

"Not a problem, but if you keep up your performance, soon, there won't be much more I could teach."

Noah colored a bit.

"No, I'm a rookie in every way. You are still a lot more experienced."

"Don't need to be so modest. You're the best cadet we've ever had."

"No, it's uh – " Noah stuttered a bit, a mix of embarrassment and shyness overcoming him on hearing praise from a man whom himself, was almost legendary.

"Aww, so cute, you're blushing. I think you best stop with the praising, Shadow, or someone's gonna get light headed."

"Shut it!" Noah elbowed Rex.

Kenwyn laughed lightly.

"It's true, all of us, lieutenants, agreed on that during the final review of all the cadets' performance," she confirmed. "Not to mention, Six highly recommended that you be the awarded."

Noah's brows nearly flew off his forehead.

"What? Six? That can't be true!"

"C'mon Noah, you can't think that Six wouldn't support you!" Rex exclaimed, clapping his shoulder.

"Believe it. Six submitted a thirty-page volume of testimony to support his recommendation," Shadow added.

"Well, that must be because of my uh, friendship with Action Man here. He must have known Rex can't live here without me," Noah joked, trying not to get ahead of himself.

Rex then shook him so roughly by the shoulders, Noah thought his brains would rattle within his skull.

"Listen, dude! Six wouldn't let you anywhere near an inch of me if he thought you were totally hopeless! He saw you were still capable enough to hold your own at least. Why else were you allowed in on our missions before?"

Noah was stunned. It was true that he started out handpicked by a Providence Aptitude Panel to work undercover as Rex's companion. Though Six was one of those who interviewed and passed him, Noah never expected that the strict and overly watchful Six would allow Noah to get away with so many crazy antics with Rex. He always assumed the reason why Six gave so much leeway and tolerance, was because of the special bond that Noah eventually formed with Rex. Because of that, he never thought Six actually thought Noah was capable.

"Oh wow," Noah breathed, getting dizzy. To have not just one, but two Legends, validate him, was amazing.

"Well, would you look at that," Rex cooed in an annoying tone as if he was addressing a baby, poking Noah's cheek. "Someone's all flustered. Just chill bro, it's only Six and Shadow, no pressure."

Noah flashed him haughty smile, but while inwardly deciding between choking him, or elbowing his gut, a faint beep sound suddenly came from both lieutenants' communicators.

Kenwyn and Shadow straightened their postures and responded in, faces solemn and serious when they addressed Captain Calan and listened to their orders.

When it was done, Kenwyn relaxed.

"Bummer, can't stay to chat –Captain wants to see us in an urgent briefing," she said and gave Rex's biceps another squeeze.

"See you around, Noah. I look forward to working with you." Shadow gave him another handshake before they left.

"Sure, see you around," Noah called after, then did a soft wolf-whistle as soon he was sure they were out of earshot.

"Amazing how a woman can change in six years," Noah commented, "Kenwyn used to be kinda so stoic. How come I've never heard you say what a Siren she has become?"

"Because he had his puppy eyes stuck on Circe, that's what," Bobo helpfully pointed out.

"Jeez, thanks Bobo. You really know how to rub a guy's wound raw," Rex returned a mock-sarcastic come back.

Boho chortled loudly.

"Extra salt anyone?"

Then he suddenly went off as if something had caught his eye that gave him ideas for a new prank –his typical joy and laughter.

Noah patted Rex's shoulders.

"I know your pain, Rex. But dude, your pain is over. Remember that little conversation we had during my Summer break, when you cried like the Niagara Falls?"

"What? I didn't cry," Rex protested, even though he did.

"Yea, and I'm not gay," Noah said sarcastically in a light tone. "Anyway, I think the solution to your pain is here."

When Rex returned a clueless expression, Noah sighed.

"Kenwyn. Good looks, with strong jaws and brows and full lips – slight resemblance to Circe, really, except with a tad darker skin. But still hot."

"What? Oh no, no, no, no," Rex deadpanned, shaking off Noah's hand and giving him an eagle eye, "That's the dumbest suggestion I've heard. Dumber than when you made me go on double dates with you, Claire and Annie the jinx."

"C'mon, she could be your missing soul mate. I mean, she's Providence, you're Providence, and you said you've *worked together several times before. She got promoted to lieutenant, right? And you said she kicked ass."

"Yea, but I'm not into her."

"Are you kidding me? Even though she flirts with you? I bet she has been trying to seduce you for a long while."

"The hell? Whatever gave you that impression?" Rex was stupefied.

"Earlier. Seriously, you mean you didn't notice she was flirting with you?"

"You're delusional, Noah."

"Seriously, your check-up with Holiday is overdue – I think your eyesight has serious problems."

Rex shook his head and started ambling off towards the cafeteria.

"Are you getting hungry? Because I am," Rex announced, ignoring Noah's suggestion. "Let's get lunch."

Noah refused to give him reprieve. Not that he really thought they would make a good item. Just that he was getting a kick out of Rex's terrified look.

It reminded him of back in those days whenever Rex was forced to go out with Annie.

Barely into the cafeteria, Noah's teasing was cut short when a pair of lanky arms – one bandaged – flew round his shoulders.

"Noah! I'm so glad that we're together!"

Noah smiled, guessing Tio had also already checked which combat platoon he was assigned to.

"Aww, that's touching, Tio, you want to hang with me that bad?" he gently pried Tio's arms off, as his friend was yanking him backwards with his weight.

"Yes! I mean, anyone's fine as long as it's not with the Velociraptor!" Noah felt a sense of déjà vu as Tio continued crying out lines of relief, prompting him to scan the area, least Sarah was around.

Tio's aversion was understandable, all due to the horrible coordination that his team had in the Final Exam. In Sarah's over eagerness to outperform her peers, she rushed ahead without proper area clearance, leaving her team wide open to EVO attacks. Poor Tio tried to maintain his position as her back support as much as he could, following close at her heel, despite her lack of communication with the rest of the team. He ended up jumping into the fray to defend her when an EVO attack suddenly appeared, which explained his injured wrist.

"C'mon man, you're still calling her that? She ain't that bad, you know?"

Tio waved his injured arm in front of Noah's face like a mad man.

"This was what happened to me because of her crazy stunt! Who else does that? Charging forward without a care?"

Noah gave a half smile and cast a glance at Rex.

"Well, actually, I can name one crazier than her."

"Yea? Talking about me?" Rex pointed at himself, but took no offence. "Well in any case, your team didn't go down so bad as to needing me to interfere," Rex pointed out.

"Whatever, I'm just glad that I'm stuck with you," Tio declared and squeezed Noah in a tight hug as if his life depended on it.

"Wow, someone's sure popular," Ronny remarked, coming up to them.

Before either Noah or Rex could reply, Tio suddenly relinquished Noah and threw himself over Ronny.

"Ronnyyyy!" Tio cried, "I'm so relieved we're not stuck with the Velociraptor."

Ronny wore the most comical, befuddled, stunned look that made Noah and Rex crack up.

"Uh, guess that's good then? We're lucky, huh?" Ronny scratched his chin as if he didn't really know how to reply.

"Hell ya! It's true, there really is a God! You know, I prayed hard last three nights after Final Exam!"

"Oh man, that Tio," Rex started, a little winded from laughing as they watched from the side, "I think you'll get plenty of laughs with him around."

Noah agreed, nodding, then remembered to be worried.

"Tio's one thing, but that said, I have to be honest. I'm quite nervous about the platoon Tio and I are posted in. What if they're Spartans from hell?" Noah confided.

"So about what Spartans? You're Top Cadet! You think you can't keep up?"

"No, it's not that, it's just... what if we don't get along?"

"Impossible! No one will be able to resist your amazingness."

"I'm serious, Rex. We're taking about folks who could be my sworn brothers for life!" Noah freaked.

"What? Am I not enough as your brother?" Rex did a mock choke around Noah's neck.

"Rex!" Noah yelped and they tousled a bit before Rex released him.

"Fine, fine, I'll give you the verdict. You're with Delta, aren't you?

"Yea, wonder if I'll be okay there."

Rex's eyes balled like stars and his face split into a huge grin.

"My man, don't worry, you'll fit in just fine."

* * *

Noah nervously headed towards Delta sleeping quarters, wondering what sort of introductions he should make if a Delta member passed his way. Though he didn't bunk with them, members of the same platoon were roomed in the same section of the dormitory, which were lined juxtapose to each other.

Tio was his roommate, but he couldn't find him anywhere, so he was here alone.

When he got into his allocated room, he was pleasantly surprised by the welcome party, plus a few familiar faces, topped with pizza and drinks. Tio was also already there in the crowded room. Matthew, Cody, Nathan and lieutenant Jackson were there, seated around the empty space on the floor or squeezed together on the couch, among others. Noah had no idea those guys were in Delta platoon, since he had never asked. He was instantly relieved as over the past weeks, he got along with them pretty well whenever they passed by each other and chit chatted.

They hauled Noah in enthusiastically, welcoming him into their team, and offering him their big meal. However, when they started congratulating him on making Best Cadet, Noah had a nagging feeling that there was something ulterior going on, especially when he spied a couple of loose dollar bills lying about on the floor.

When he pointed out the money on the floor, the guys grinned sheepishly and admitted that they had bet against another platoon that Noah would be top scorer and the most outstanding trainee. Noah rolled his eyes, but smiled in spite of their unscrupulous motivation.

Then Nathan slung a shoulder over Noah.

"Don't be mad, Noah, we were really surprised and happy to have you. I mean, I'm getting another buddy who's like me."

Cody rolled his eyes.

"Actually, I highly doubt that he's a whore like you."

"I'll teach him," Nathan's eyes twinkled, then he cried in pain as Matthew grinded his headed again.

"I've told you not to teach our new member your corrupted values, right?"

Noah smiled as he observed the antics of his new platoon mates.

"Jokes aside, you did a good job proving that you're more than just a special title," Jackson clapped Noah on the back approvingly.

Noah immediately got Jackson's blunt meaning, but took no offence since he detected no sarcasm from the older man.

"Yea, tell me about it! It's crazy how you got high recommendations from _someone_ at top level," Matthew gushed. "I've never heard Six do that for anyone for as long as I was here!"

"Oh you know, it's hard for _certain_ top agents to not be floored by my incredible skills," Noah gave a joking, cocky drawl, grinning from ear to ear.

"Well lucky for you, it sure is good to have friends in high places," Cody joked lightly, though he gave Noah a look of admiration.

Noah was thankful for their approval of his performance and award. Looking back at his training, he was hard pressed to admit that one reason why he worked so hard, was because he didn't want to just be 'that officer' who tagged along with Rex. He wanted to earn that place rightfully, so that any officer who sees them together, will salute him as Rex's capable wingman.

Relieved that the Delta guys were friendly and accepting, he squeezed into the crowd of twenty odd guys and helped himself to the food and drinks.

Just barely into his second can of beer, a knock suddenly came to the door, interrupting the guys' rambunctious partying.

When Cody got the door, Rex was there.

"Rex, my man! I knew you'd come. Can't leave your darling to pack of wolves, can ya?"

Noah could box Nathan in the eyes, but he didn't have the heart, nor could get annoyed at his twinkling eyes and cheeky smirk. He was too much in a good mood to be bothered by Nathan's taunt.

"Nope, I'm not worried, since the only wolf here, is you," Rex smoothly shot back, waggling his brows, "I'm just here to crash the party."

"Hmm," Jackson rubbed his chin as he eyed his men from the corner of his eyes, "But here's the thing, it's for Delta only."

Rex was thoughtful for a while. "I can bring my PlayStation."

The Delta guys exchanged looks then nodded eagerly. "Sure!"

But just before the door closed behind Rex, Jackson yelled, "Just leave the monkey!"

"Aww," Rex sagged against the door and popped his head back in. "But it comes in a package. 2-for-1. No monkey, no game."

"That's a tough one," Jackson closed his eyes in deep thought, scratching his chin again whilst the rest of the guys looked to their platoon leader.

"Alright," Jackson conceded when he opened his eyes. "But tell him poker's banned in our rooms!"

Everyone burst into raucous laughter, as did Rex.

Noah watched him and the Delta guys around them, bright smile plastered to his face.

 _Yea_ , he thought to himself, he was going to fit in here just fine.

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

 ***Kenwyn:** She was with the boys in Basic.

 ***worked together several times before:** Kenwyn reappeared in season 2 on a mission with Rex. They did well enough together that at the end White Knight expressed interest in teaming the two of them more often.

 ***Wade:** She appeared in season 1 with Beasly, when she provoked Rex, saying that he wouldn't last even one week in Basic. Rex basically took up the challenge, roped Noah in and well, you know the rest! XD


	19. Nasty Business

I know since I take a donkey long time to post updates (sorry about that!), I've included a short recap at the bottom, for stuff in the previous chapters that is relevant to this chapter.

 **Chapter 19: Nasty Business**

(Providence moves to bust a black arms transaction)

* * *

The cafeteria was on the third floor, and crowded even though Providence operatives took their lunch in shifts. It was a mass dining hall lined with rows of tables and benches and a wide buffet spread so the staff could pick what they want.

As expected, Rex and Noah made a beeline for the taco bar, where they could choose the size of their pita bread and their own fillings for their taco. Needless to say, they stuffed their tacos till the pita burst, holding up the queue because they'd taken so long. Satisfied, they moved on to get drinks and a couple of sides, like fries and salads before they settled into their seats.

"Finally! This taco is mine!" Noah announced happily. He had initially layed off it until he could pass Basic.

"Yeah," Rex grinned, "You finally earned your reward."

"I wonder how the tacos here compare," Noah commented as he gingerly held his between both hands, inspecting it on all sides, elbows propped on the tabletop.

Rex raised his brows.

"Aren't they all the same? It's just bread, meat, sauce and cheese."

"Oh sure, but there's the quality of the cuts they use for the meat and how they seasoned it. Then there's the brand of sauce and cheese. And even the crispiness of the pita –how it was prepared and toasted."

Rex had already dug in while Noah talked, wolfing his food like he normally does.

"Are you going to start eating that? Or shall I finish it for you?" Rex pointedly asked with his mouth full.

Noah made a face.

"Hey, don't rob this moment from me. This will be the first time that I'm eating Providence taco. I want to remember this."

Rex nearly choked as a laugh rose from his throat. He quickly gulped down his drink to help keep the food down least he coughs it out.

"You know, you say the wackiest things sometimes."

"Yea? Like you," Noah gave a side smirk, "And that's why we're buddies."

"Good point," Rex said with his mouth full.

Noah then proceeded to slowly savor his food, taking small bites and chewing slowly, making funny faces and a plethora of expressions as if he was some gourmet food taster. Rex abandoned his food and cracked up as he watched Noah.

"So, how does it compare with the others you've eaten?"

Noah chewed a few more times before he grinned.

"It'll pass. In fact, I think I'm going to have seconds."

"Good, so do I."

However, they wouldn't get the chance –an announcement blared over the speakers before they were done eating. An urgent, mission debrief was on in ten minutes and the names of the platoons involved were read out, which included Delta.

Rex and Noah exchanged looks –Providence was activating a rather large team all at once, where each platoon consisted of eighteen to twenty four agents, which wasn't common.

"Ten platoons –not as many as the mission at the oilrig, but still a large number," Noah commented.

Rex nodded. "Yeah, it could probably be something big."

They hurriedly gobbled the rest of their tacos, leaving the rest of their food untouched and jogged off. Rex however, decided at the last minute that it was too much of a waste so he doubled back and stuffed a handful of fries into his mouth.

"Rex!" Noah exclaimed from behind him, "I can't believe you. Are you a pig?"

Rex couldn't reply since his mouth was packed so full he could hardly chew, so he just gave Noah an innocent look when he turned around.

Noah stared, then suddenly burst into laughter, hugging his stomach.

Rex frowned, raising his hands up by his sides in a questioning manner. It took a few more seconds for Noah to calm down enough to explain himself.

"You look like a greedy, little hamster."

Rex deepened his frown in mock offense and tilted his head up sideways in haughty show, marching past Noah indignantly.

"Seriously, why are you so fucking cute?" Noah continued to joke behind him, prompting Rex to stop dead in his heels.

 _Cute._

Rex couldn't hardly believe what he'd heard. Even if it was a joke, Rex would never have thought of anyone associating that word with him. It was probably just a random remark that Noah made at the top of his head.

Yet somehow, Rex felt steam rise from his heated face.

The only other person who had ever called him cute, was Circe, and she usually followed it with a kiss.

 _Would Noah..?_ Rex stiffened, troubled by where that train of thought was leading.

 _Focus man!_ Rex quickly chided himself inwardly, stuffing all memories of Noah's lips to the back of his head. Noah wasn't Circe, though he was hard pressed to admit, kissing his best friend actually felt rather nice.

* * *

In these Middle Eastern lands, the noon sun was high in the cloudless sky, casting short, stunted shadows of the troop that weaved through the rocky, parched valleys down below.

Rex slid down the steep, sienna slope joined by Six, Bobo and the rest of Delta platoon, sending dust and loose rocks softly tumbling down the ravine. The fierce and unforgiving heat had swathed Rex and the rest like a cooker, drenching their clothes with sweat.

But the discomfort was minor, or more accurately, ignored, considering the mission priority that took precedence. Bobo was the only one who complained he was going to die of heat exhaustion, and indeed, the EVO gorilla moved slower than usual, and lagged behind everyone else.

"C'mon, aren't you lucky that your *fur is still short? Would have been worse," Rex pointed out, looking backwards at the hairless wonder.

Poor Bobo only had enough energy to grunt and glare at him.

"Seriously, with lesser fur, your skin will absorb more vitamin D from the sun," Noah added jokingly.

A few of Noah's platoon mates stifled their laughs – anyone who dared laugh or make fun over Bobo's tragedy, was courting for misery. For indeed, when he first returned, all those who laughed at him being a 'hairless wonder', found themselves scratching ticks off their hair and shaving their head.

Rex and Noah were the only ones who could get away with it.

"Just wait, you two clowns, I'll make monkeys out of you when we get back."

Rex and Noah only exchanged knowing smiles over Bobo's empty threat. The ape wouldn't admit it, but he was a big softie when it came to the both of them.

When Six grunted, everyone took it as a warning to quit their jokes. Six could tolerate only that much chatter since he took missions super seriously.

They were in the mountainous deserts somewhere between Turkey and Syria, closing in on the supposed black arms operation camp.

Razarul was the largest crime syndicate involved in illegal high-tech arms dealing that had been rapidly expanding in recent years. Interpol had been tracking their activities, trying to bring an end to their operations. It seemed they were the middle traders, getting goods from an elusive figure only known by the name *'Modifier,' who was supposedly a genius, high tech weapons developer.

Razarul have been linked to supplying firearms to various terrorist groups in Africa and Middle East Asia, which caused much terror on the locals and greatly outmatched the government militia. Interpol managed to gather enough evidence against Razarul, but had been having a lot of trouble busting their operations and taking down the big operatives.

In other words, they've lost more than a few good men on this case. Which was why after the Interpol recon team uncovered one of their bases in the heart of these treacherous, sun-baked valleys, they've called Providence for assistance to take down this base. And hopefully, by bringing in the leaders of Razarul, it would provide leads to who Modifier was and where he hid, so they could put a stop to his dangerous, profiteering schemes.

Six led the team onwards, moving swiftly and lightly through the trench, with his jacket flapping lightly behind him. He pointedly turned his head towards an angle and Rex followed his line of sight. They spotted a black short rod supporting a surveillance camera, pitched on the top side of the opposite face, that was dangerously coming close to turning in their direction.

Moving alongside Rex, Noah quickly raised a specialized gun and fired the signal disruptor. Rex grinned and gave Noah a thumbs up for his spot on aim, who grinned back.

The signal disrupter was a tiny, coin-sized piece of device that disrupts the camera's recording functions, while sending a proxy feed back to the main control, replaying the recorded footage of the last sixty seconds, over and over. Hence, it would allow the team to proceed on without fear of being caught.

Another two surveillance cameras further up front were taken out by other officers in Delta squadron. Coast clear, Six ran up the steep slope on the opposite side with relative ease, despite the thick blanket of sand atop the rocky ravine that was shifting beneath their feet. Rex was quietly awed that Six breezed like he'd a cushion of air between his feet and the ground.

No matter how many times Rex paired up with Six on missions, he continued to be impressed by Six's ninja-like skills.

Six stopped just before reaching the top, flattening himself down and signaled the rest to follow suit. They laid on the hot, rough terrain in a line, with Rex lying next to Six and Noah lying on Rex's other side. Six fished a pair of mini binoculars from inside his blazer pocket and surveyed the scene before them.

Rex pulled his goggles down for better visual too.

True to Interpol sources, multiple large tents crowded the flat terrain roughly a mile away, in between four dome shaped barracks. Vehicles moved in and out from the west side and Rex could see trucks loaded with crates that probably contained the illegal firearms. Besides the men who moved in and out, there were others stationed about and patrolling the perimeter, dressed in navy uniform with symbol of their group embroidered on their sleeves.

"Delta is in position. Other troops, please report," Six spoke into the comm links.

The line started flooding with replies one after the other, reporting on their current positions. Six nodded in satisfaction when all came back that they have also reached their allocated positions.

As it was imperative to catch Razarul by surprise, Providence had to move in stealthily, split into different routes to get here so that in case one squadron got discovered and was stopped along the way, the rest could still proceed with the mission.

They left Providence HQ roughly three days ago to make the journey to their rendezvous point, with Captain Hutton and Six leading the mission.

To avoid detection, half of the troops flew in by jet, and dropped off at a faraway enough point along the border that intersected Syria, Turkey and Iraq. They donned civilian clothing as they entered, moving towards the rendezvous point via the regular public train system. Dropping off at the closest town, they had to trek the rest of the way.

Since Bobo would obviously attract too much attention travelling in public, Six's troop, as well as the troops led by Kenwyn and Shadow, landed in Cyprus, an island country situated in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Syria. From there, they entered through different points along the shoreline via small underwater carriers that their jet planes ferried over. These small-scale vessels could house a platoon of roughly twenty odd men and they were more maneuverable and faster than the regular, giant submarines. Likewise, they hiked the rest of the way in, moving quickly and taking short breaks in between, never staying in one position for too long. They spent almost one day travelling inland until they reached their current location.

The Razarul camp was right smack in the middle of a ring of valleys and ridges that cradled it. It was a great elusive hiding spot as the surrounding geography made it hard to detect via the satellite. And it was isolated and so well hidden with its maze of rocky ravines and ridges, that one wouldn't be able to find it unless they knew where to look.

In the mission debrief, Rex heard Captain Calan saying that Interpol only found this hide out after their agents spent almost two years infiltrating Razarul. Then once they sent a recon team to confirm the whereabouts, they passed along the information to Providence to take over.

That info was crucial to finding the weak spot. Unfortunately for the Razarul, every nest has its disadvantages. There were only two entry passes that cut across a ravine, which means vehicle escape is vastly limited so they are essentially boxed in their own trap if both routes are cut off.

Hence, Captain Calan and Six have positioned two troops close to each pass, while the other five troops were spread out, posted along the rocky circle to cut off the escape of the Razarul men should they try to escape by foot over the ridges.

It was a sound plan, but it struck Rex as strange as he could count only about two hundred Razarul men at the base. Struck with questions, he turned to Six and softly asked him if Interpol had given any details on the number of Razarul operatives stationed here.

To his surprise, Six answered that it was more or less the same number of men they were seeing now.

"Well, that doesn't add up right. I mean, we've also got two hundred odd agents and between the two of us, we can easily take down half of these guys," Rex pointed out. "So why was it necessary to activate so many troops?"

Six gave a small sigh, shaking his head. Rex could only imagine what sort of disappointed look he was wearing beneath his shades.

"What? Is there something here that I'm missing?"

"Yea," came Bobo's breathless voice, finally crawling up to the same level with them, collapsing next to Noah, "Your ears."

Rex pointedly touched both his ears.

"Nope, they're still here, attached to my head."

Six gave another sigh but remained silent, which irked Rex because Six treated him like this when he thought Rex was acting like a kid, at which point, Rex was actually being very serious.

Noah snickered and gave Rex a look of mock pity, galling him further.

"What?" Rex hissed.

"Dude, Captain Calan already mentioned it in the briefing."

Noah proceeded to recount Calan's words, saying the previous Razarul base which Interpol tried to take down, half a year ago at West Africa, had ended in disaster. Only forty percent of the operatives retreated alive, with most of them suffering a post-traumatic disorder, so there were no details about what had happened. Broken radio interceptions and shambolic case notes from the survivors painted a chaotic battle but not much else was known.

"The survivors claimed to have met a demon that rose from underground, drawing electricity from the electric cables and shooting it out from its hands like Zeus and having powers over fire and rocks like Hephaestus," Noah finished.

"Huh? Is that so." Rex racked his brain, wondering why the description sounded so familiar.

"Yes, that's what Calan said, which was why so many platoons were mobilized. You seriously weren't listening, were you?"

"Hey, I was, okay," Rex protested, or at least, he remembered that he tried to. Since he had such a full lunch that noon, he struggled to keep awake during the long briefing, but might have accidently nodded off without realizing.

Noah grinned.

"Sure you were, with your eyes closed. I saw you."

"Well then, if you saw me dozing off, why didn't you wake me?" Rex deadpanned.

"Because all your oxygen cells were down in your stomach, since you stuffed your face. I thought maybe this poor little hamster should get a little shut eye before the mission starts, to get his energy back up."

Rex bristled at being called a hamster again –it was so not cool to be called that. But before he could make a comeback, Six hushed them.

"Quiet you two, less bickering, more observing. Looks like *Donny J. has just arrived."

"What?" Rex kept his voice low and stared ahead.

Sure enough, that two-faced, slimy son of a bastard who viciously ordered his own father to be murdered while treating the hundreds of lives of his employees as fodder, just got off a jeep. He was closely guarded by six security guards, and they were led towards one of barracks by the Razarul men.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Rex seethed, anger mounting on recollection of Donny J.'s cruelty.

"For dirty business, no doubt. Interpol spies had learnt that he would show up here, today, around this time, which was why our every move the last three days was crucial. We need to catch him in the act of the transaction so that we can bring him behind bars."

Rex scoffed in agitation.

"So Interpol is begging us to snatch him now, when they had ordered us to release him from custody before? Amazing how they think!"

He was still pissed about it –Providence had put Donny J. and Stone Wallings on their number one suspect list for hiring *Blaster Prince in corporate espionage, arson and murder. Hence, Providence held them in custody since the night of the oilrig mission. But because Providence Intel officers couldn't gather enough evidence, Interpol stepped in and demanded their release not just two days after.

And now when Interpol finds themselves lacking and unable to accomplish their mission, they push it onto Providence –what a way of crapping on others.

"It's complicated," Six merely replied, signaling that he was done with the conversation.

"Well, whatever the case is, we need to move in closer to listen in on them, right?" Noah suggested.

Rex punched his fist together. "I'm so on it."

"No, not you," Six objected.

"Awww, why not?" Rex whined. His current position was too far to eavesdrop, especially in this open space, but if he got close enough, he was sure he could pick up something with his acute hearing.

"Shadow," Six ignored Rex, "I need you to move in, to the innermost barrack where Donny has just entered. We need to know what he's planning with the Razarul. Get a recording of it as evidence."

"Roger that," Shadow's reply came over. Rex sighed softly –actually, he already knew the answer.

"Okay, I know, I know, being subtle is not my strong points," Rex conceded, knowing that unless he had a disguise, he'd be spotted halfway to the barracks.

"Good that you know," Six said, then gave the tiniest smirk, "But everyone has their own strengths. You'll get your turn."

Rex smiled, since in Six's speech, that meant he was entrusting Rex with what he does best –using his fist to talk.

Noah bumped elbows with him and gave a smirk, one brow arching.

"Yea, relax, Rex, you'll get your action soon."

Rex grinned, wondering if Noah was also saying that for himself. Even if Noah appeared calm and patient on the surface, he knew Noah was also aching for action.

It was not as if Noah had any active nanites kicking in action or that Rex had any biometric scanners. But for some reason, when Rex's nanites were excited and kicking in full gear like now, his senses heightened, making him more attuned to his surroundings, even to minute details that he ordinary wouldn't notice. Like when Noah's adrenalines spiked, Rex could always sense it, as if his excitement was radiating in waves off him. Oddly enough, Rex doesn't seem to really notice the bodily signals from other people –maybe it was because Noah was the only one who was always closest to him.

Like now, they were a mere few inches apart, and Rex could just tell from Noah's focused face, his tensed shoulders, his deeper breathing and his slightly parted mouth, that Noah was geared up for action as well. Rex's stare lingered on Noah's pale pink lips, suddenly seized by this insane desire to catch them. He wanted to breathe in and out of Noah, to feed on Noah's adrenaline like oil to engine, like fuel to fire.

It was crazy.

Just a few weeks ago, after Rex saved Noah from the horrible sadistic pervert, Ray, they had kissed again. Noah initiated it, seemingly needing comfort and support. Rex tried not to give much thought to it, only because at the time, it felt like it was the most natural thing to do.

Well, breathing from Noah's mouth was obviously the most unnatural thing to do in the middle of a mission, so Rex shook his insane thoughts away, focusing on the movements in the barracks.

After another fifteen minutes or so, Shadow came into view, getting off a jeep together with three other providence officers whom Rex recognized. They were disguised in Razarul uniform, so Rex guessed they must have also messed with the security feeds from the cameras at the pass and quietly taken out the guards at the post. They probably also hijacked the jeep so they could enter unsuspectingly.

Rex tensed, anxious while Shadow talked to the guard posted outside the barrack which Donny and his guards were in. As their communication lines were still open, they could hear everything. Thankfully, the three guards bought Shadow's story of a shift change and went off, but not before reminding Shadow not to disturb their leaders inside as they were holding a very important meeting.

Shadow nodded and took up positions with the other three providence officers along the metal wall near the door. They still had to keep up the pretense since there were other Razarul men still working around the area, moving goods or patrolling.

Shadow discreetly cut a tiny opening into the wall with a small laser, and insert a tiny video camera to record proof of Donny's involvement in the underground world. Then he attached another coin-sized device –a highly sensitive audio receiver and transmitter –onto the wall. The conversation inside the barrack immediately came over the communication lines, sounding clear and crisp.

"You heard me, the price has just gone up," Donny sounded smug.

"What? You can't do this. It's not what we agreed on," another man exclaimed, sounding outraged.

"I apologize," Donny replied, even if his tone was anything but apologetic, "But you know how Modifier's weapons are gaining popularity. Razarul is not the biggest client anymore. There are many others who have offered to pay much, _much_ more."

Rex tensed on the mention of Modifier, still remembering how Blaster Prince had been coldly eliminated by the weapons creator. Of course, they had no concrete proof of this, but it was anyone's guess that Modifier was the culprit, since Rex knows he hadn't damaged the suit enough to cause it to blow up.

Someone gave a raspy laugh then continued in an enraged, hoarse tone.

"Which means, as his middle man, you're intending to get an even larger cut of the money than before, isn't it? Don't fuck with me!"

The third man finished with a shout and the banging sound of a chair being kicked over, followed after.

Noah and Rex exchanged looks, sharing the same thoughts. It seemed like the business was turning ugly. Rex wondered then, if them being on bad terms would be useful to Providence…

"Don't think you can act all cocky just because you've been his agent. We're sick of doing business with you. We'll get the goods without your meddling."

"If that's the way you feel, then it's too bad. No payment, no deal," Donny informed, tone sharp.

The gruff, hoarse voice gave a raucous laugh and a few other men joined in.

"It seems you don't understand your position."

"Shadow," Six spoke up, "Be ready to interrupt before they fire their weapons. We must bring Donny J. in alive."

Sure enough, the sounds of guns clocking could be heard and Rex tensed, every muscle in his body trembling with the urge to jet ahead. However, he forced himself to hold back, to wait for Six's cue.

"You're not the only one with access to high tech toys."

As if on cue, the ground shook with a terrible rumble, growling like the belly of a giant beast stirring awake beneath ground. Somewhere in between Rex's location and the barracks, the ground erupted from a single point, crack lines rippling outward for miles. Like volcanic gas vents, a thick gush of dirt and chucks of soil spewed towards the sky, rising thirty feet before showering down onto earth.

From the eruption, burst a spawn from hell, glowing with fearsome amber red fires that seared danger from the curtain of soil raining around it.

Rex and the others were knocked off their balance from the thunderous impact and slid back down into the trench. By the time Rex regained his footing and climbed back up, the erupted earth had settled down, revealing a familiar, nine feet tall humanoid looking robot that sent Rex's temples pulsing in ire like old times.

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **+FYI - Recap from my previous chapters+**

 ***Bobo's short fur :** In chapter 15, 'Genius Distractions', Bobo was forced to shave to rid himself of the undesirable leeches and bugs tormenting him. All because Caesar sent him to some uninhabited swamp as revenge for his outrageous prank that insulted the top scientist.

 ***Modifier:** A mysterious, high tech weapons developer who provided weapons for Blaster Prince. Also known to have provided arms in the black market for unsavory groups, but so far, little else is known about him.

 ***Donny J.:** The son of one of the Consortium member – Roswell, who was an oil  & mineral magnate. Hired Blaster Prince for corporate espionage to sabotage his own father's conglomerate. Ordered attacks on several of Roswell's properties, including factories, warehouses and an oil rig. Also the mastermind who laid the trap for Roswell – the Meta-Elemental was caught by Providence at the cross fire at the oil rig. Was on security watch list, but was released by Interpol since there was not enough evidence against his dirty dealings. (Chpt 3&4)

 ***Blaster Prince:** A mercenary for hire. He dons a high tech full suit (created by Modifier) with the capacity to produce powerful sound waves for attacks. First hired for corporate espionage by Donny J in chpt 3 &4\. He got away, but reappeared at Noah's graduation (chpt 16) for his personal agenda of revenge, targeting Noah. He met his end when his suit appeared to have been rigged to explode on his failure to terminate them.


	20. Flatlined

**FYI, a recap included at bottom for related info from my earlier chapters.

* * *

 **Chapter 20: Flatlined**

(In the midst of Razarul take down, Rex encounters an old nemesis, who seems a bit different from before...)

* * *

Glowing streaks of amber, like lava trails down the mountainside, criss-crossed over the EVO's form in disarray. It carried an extra thick maroon armored plating around its chest and back, protecting a core system that allowed it to siphon different types of energy from its surroundings and convert it into his powered shots.

It was Dynamo-Meta, an EVO that was originally a member of the consortium –*Sir Anthony Haden-Scott. It was no wonder then, those Interpol witnesses called it like Zeus and Hephaestus combined.

Only its coloring was slightly different from before. It was now stained a deep red as if its original, charcoal black body had been roasted over hell's fire for a prolonged period.

Without waiting for Six's cue, Rex sped forwards on his Slyder at the same time that Dynamo-Meta drew fuel from the nearby vehicles, sucking it up like a vacuum machine, before blasting red hot fire at the side of the barrack.

Shadow and the three other Providence officers moved in get Donny out, who was shouting cries of curses and outrage at what had melted a giant hole in the metal wall. Razarul men intercepted Shadow's team and they engaged in a gun fight.

"Ahh, the blasted Providence, just in time. Meet our latest investment, curtesy of Modifier himself," the hoarse voice, which probably belonged to the leader or an important figure of Razarul, announced proudly. "You guys and Donny can meet your fates together with a friendly greeting from us."

"W-What do you think you're doing? You can't do this, I've been providing you with lots of support and have been supplying you with high tech firearms!" Donny protested. "The Razarul still needs my resources."

"Yes, indeed, but unfortunately, I'm afraid we can no longer maintain the relationship."

Dynamo-Meta aimed an open palm at Donny but Rex has neared and caught Dynamo-Meta with his whips, hurling it off to the side. The EVO flew thirty yards, burrowing into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust and rocks.

Captain Calan ordered for all troops, except for two squadrons which were to remain at the pass, to close in and engage the Razarul. It was just as well, since the Razarul mercenaries became a mad scramble when Rex appeared, firing at him from all direction.

Rex could see how lethal and dangerous their weapons were –laser guns and pellets that released electrical currents on contact to electrocute the victim, and pellets that split mid-air and exploded into a barrage of mini explosions. It was almost overwhelming, even for Rex, who luckily, had his energy shield in a bubble around him to protect from the onslaught.

There were sounds of scuffle and gunshots coming from within the barracks but Rex wasn't given the chance to check. Dynamo -Meta had gotten up, so Rex had to trust that Shadow and his other men could handle the situation inside.

Dynamo-Meta sent a fiery dragon charging towards Rex. He braced himself and fortified his shield, hence the flaming beast ruptured against his energy beam. It spilled harmlessly all around in a fountain of blinding red and orange, but the heat was unbearable, cooking Rex like he was within the heart of a volcano.

Rex trembled from the effort of keeping his shield up against the firepower that surrounded him. Finally, Providence squadrons reached within firing distance –in good timing. They met the mercenaries head on with weapons and hand-to-hand combat, taking them off Rex's back. It took the stress off Rex so he could direct all his energy field in a stronger pane to block the Meta-EVO's firepower. He steadily pushed back against Dynamo-Meta's firepower to take his fight further away from the rest of the guys for their safety.

A quick scan back at navy colors clashing with monochrome, Rex grinned as out from the corner of his eyes, he spotted that familiar thatch of pale golden hair, shining in the sun. Never mind that majority of the other Providence officers also had blond colored hair. Rex was able to pick Noah out from the large scramble of bodies fighting around, just from the way he moved. Noah dodged the Razarul guys with slick moves he had displayed in basketball competitions. He ran, jumped, ducked and rolled like he'd springs on his feet, flexible coils in every body muscle and fire at his heels. Noah was wary and watchful like a boxer, graceful like an acrobat, and an excellent marksman like Six, taking out the enemies weapons by aiming for their hands.

Rex was super thrilled that Noah was here on a mission with him –officially, as a Providence agent. It made Rex feel super charged up, empowered by Noah's powerful, fluid moves.

Noticing that Dynamo-Meta was soon running out of juice because his fire dragon slimmed to a narrow gush, Rex smirked to himself. He quickly armor-plated his arms and hurtled his giant fists and Block Party straight towards Dynamo-Meta, heavily smashing against the Meta-EVO.

Dynamo-Meta grunted in an electronized sound as it reeled back and heavily crashed onto the ground. The Meta-Evo was not done despite being down.

The approaching crackle in the air molecules that hummed against Rex's skin, alerted him to the electrical power that Dynamo-Meta must be absorbing from a nearby exclusive generator which powered the Razarul camp.

Rex was quick to turn round and direct that current away from Dynamo-Meta by creating giant, conducting rods that thrust upwards from his shoulders. His metal rods caught the blinding, chaotic bluish-white streaks that snaked and slashed about the sky, travelling downwards and storming into his entire body. If it were some other opponent, the enormous electrical power would have been advantageous to Rex as he could shoot it outward to electrocute his enemy. But since he was facing off with Dynamo-Meta, who gained power by drawing from external sources, Rex needed to disperse the energy he'd collected. Rex spasmed from the raging force within, eyes seeing sparks and white flashes before he redirected the current into the ground, causing the already cracked and uneven topsoil to break apart further.

"Hmm, very clever," Dynamo-Meta commented in a calm, robotic tone, as it got up, tilting his head sideways as if closely regarding him.

Rex had the strange sense that Dynamo-Meta sounded a bit different from before, but he supposed if its appearance could change, so could the way it sounded. In any case, he didn't have the luxury to think further about it, as Dynamo-Meta drew in more fuel from the further vehicles, arms rotating clockwise at high speeds like a suction fan.

"Oh no, you don't!" Rex objected aloud and touched the fuel midair with his whip, zapping the viscous liquid and setting it aflame in a brilliant, curving arch that sharply descended like fire flowers.

"You should know this place is as good as a dry well for you," Rex smirked and taunted, "Unless you can suck down some lightning from the sky and throw 'em at me."

Without any other source of energy to draw from, Dynamo-Meta's firepower was effectively zero. The EVO could not generate power shots on its own. The only other option was for it to chug rocks at Rex since it also had the power to move solid earth. To prevent that, Rex flew towards Meta-Evo with a flurry of supersized punches and kicks before it had the chance. Dynamo-Meta staggered backwards from the onslaught, seemingly overwhelmed.

Suddenly, shiny black armored plating slid over Dynamo-Meta's body, expanding over the thick armor over its chest, hard enough that it damaged Rex's nanite fist on impact. Rex riveted backwards from the shockwave that travelled up his arm. The Meta-EVO grew in size, caked over with layers and layers of armor. Rex shook off the crumbling pieces of his metal fists and swung his giant right boot to its neck. In a deft move, it caught his metal leg in a vice-like grip, biting into his nanite builds until it met Rex's actual ankle, all the while still increasing in size and height, lifting Rex higher up from the ground.

Rex gave an anguished cry of pain as it felt like his ankle was cracking under the crushing pressure. Just when Rex thought his bones would break into pieces, a missile collided into its shoulder, the impact sending it falling over backwards. It loosened its hold on Rex, and he dropped onto the ground, groaning in pain.

"Rex! Are you alright?" Six called over the communicators, tone tinged with worry.

Rex turned his head to see Six racing over, and Noah kneeling a hundred feet away, balancing the rocket launcher over his shoulders, with a faint puff of smoke trail still ghosting out from the barrel. Noah rested the barrel on the ground and started reloading the weapon when one of Razarul's guys tried to bring a foot down over Noah's head. Rex panicked at first, but Noah blocked the blow in time, catching the other guy's leg and giving a violent twist so the other flipped around and crashed onto the ground. The rocket launcher became abandoned on the ground as Noah was quickly kept busy by a few other Razarul men.

"C'mon Rex, get up," Six ordered, nearly reaching his side.

Rex grimaced as he tried to get up. He lost feeling in his right ankle so he wasn't sure if it was broken. Then when he tried to balance his weight on both legs, he stumbled and cried out.

 _Shit! This is bad,_ Rex became anxious, realizing he had indeed broken his ankle.

Dynamo-Meta pushed itself up with drill extensions that suddenly protruded from its back, staking downwards into the ground. Then other bionic-mechanical limbs followed, extending out from its shoulder blades like a spider-like machine, drilling and cutting the ground beneath it and hurling the cut chucks towards Rex and Six in rapid succession. Rex was taken back, but still defended himself on instinct, building his hoverbike –that at least he could manage even with one broken ankle –to dodge the barrage of rocks whilst smashing them into smaller bits with one giant nanite fist.

Six was as agile as a ninja like usual, expertly dodging the onslaught whilst jumping atop the flying chunks like he had zero-gravity, bounding up to the Meta-EVO and giving a knife chop over its bionic extensions. Six's razor sharp magna blades met the metal extensions with a resounding clang, but didn't even cut a hairline into them. Rex was perplexed – not only did Dynamo-Meta suddenly supersized itself to over fifteen feet, it had mechanic upgrades integrated. There was no question Dynamo-Meta had help from Modifier.

"Six, make way!" Noah's urgent tone came over the communicators and Six leapt away from Dynamo-Meta before another missile zipped overhead.

Learning from experience, the Meta-EVO caught the missile with giant grapplers before the fire head struck it and flung it away instantaneously, hence it exploded harmlessly in mid air in burst of light and thick smoke. Rex didn't wait for the smoke to clear –he moved in immediately after, crashing into the Meta-EVO with his battering ram, driving it backwards towards to the nearest ridge. Feet backed against the rock mound, Dynamo-Meta pushed back against Rex with incredible strength.

Multiple weaponized arms also rained down on Rex from all angles with frightening looking drill bits and sharp points. Rex extended the metal plating of his battering ram to form a hood over himself as a shield, leaving a gap at the side to parry the assault with his giant sword. Metal met metal in thunderous clang as Rex clashed weapons with Dynamo-Meta. Rex zipped about on his armored hover bike to dodge the attacks and close in when there were openings. Dynamo-Meta was slow on its feet, but its bionic limbs were swift and agile, so though Rex should have the upper hand of maneuverability and flight, he was actually no closer to taking it down.

In fact, Rex thought how strange it was that Dynamo-Meta did not utilize its flight capabilities. Since it had control over matter, it was able to manipulate air molecules for short periods, giving him temporary flight. Rex could only allude it to its giant form and heavy weight that must have impeded its flight powers.

"Rex, how are you holding up? Razarul has reinforcements coming in from the pass, so Six and I are tied up again," Noah's voice came over, sounding worried.

It brought a smile to Rex's lips despite his exhaustion –it touched him that Noah had space in his attention to be concerned for him.

"I'm fine, just keep those guys busy while I deal with Beefcake here," Rex panted a reply, "Focus on capturing Donny –that snake is not gonna get away this time."

"I've got that covered, Rex," Shadow said over the communicators, "We've apprehended him and we're now heading out the pass."

"Good," Captain Calan's voice came through, "I'll take care of things here. Six, you should follow after Shadow as support."

He went on giving orders to the rest, and the troops responded accordingly. Bobo's loveable insults came through as well, and Rex would have sniggered, if he wasn't so caught up with his end of the fight.

He was getting tired from his erratic, furtive dance with the metal beefcake. It took energy to concentrate on maintaining his nanite builds, so it was hard to keep his eyes on Dynamo-Meta's barrage of weaponized arms at the same time. Knowing he wouldn't be able to keep this up without a break, Rex decided to try something drastic. With intense focus, Rex deftly sharpened his favourite giant sword, realigning the nanites till the sword edge was a fine as a nano-millimeter thick. It was so sharp, Rex should be able to cut clean through anything.

With confidence, Rex circled in and swung his altered blade in a horizontal arc to slice off Dynamo-Meta's mechanical arms. The shrill cry of metal grating into metal pierced the air, but the sound stopped within a few seconds. Much to Rex's dismay, his fortified blade was stuck mid-slice.

 _No way!_

It should have been effortless. Yet Rex struggled to bring the blade the rest of the way through. It wouldn't bulge no matter how hard Rex tried.

And that was when he felt it –that eerie, familiar sensation of nanites rushing over and swamping his blade. Rex was horrified, remembering when he came into contact with nanites like these at the *oil rig. Just like those nanite bombs, these nanites moved like an invasive pest, trying to get into him.

Rex shuddered and released his giant sword build, letting it crumble uselessly over the mechanical limbs.

"Shit!" Rex cursed aloud and clenched his teeth, mind running in frenzy.

How the hell did Dynamo-Meta get such *invasive nanite programming into his system? Mind racing, it hit him – since Razarul declared they got Dynamo-Meta's help through direct contact with Modifier, then the latter must be the nanite engineer who installed it.

Dynamo-Meta kept coming at him without mercy, so he continued parrying, but he became a lot more sluggish as he was exhausted over the energy he had spent to refine the toughness and sharpness of his nanite sword. It took a toil on his nanite levels and his armored hover bike weakened, allowing Dynamo-Meta to puncture a hole through the overhead shield.

"Fuck!" Rex cried aloud and in a fraction of a second recalled back his nanites, letting the hover bike construction fall away into useless heaps of metal junk that quickly disintegrated into dust before the alien nanites could contaminate him.

"This is bad, this is bad, this is _so_ bad," Rex chanted in panic as he rebuilt himself another hover bike and pulled further back.

"Rex, what is happening?" Noah and Six asked in unison over the communicators. Rex had left his lines open so they must have heard his frantic chant.

"This thing, I'm having a little trouble with it-" Rex hated to admit that he was losing, that he couldn't handle a fight, but he was in over his head here, "Anthony's a lot different from before. He's got a lot of perverse upgrades."

"I did notice him operating a bit differently," Six said, sounding thoughtful, "But what's the problem? Just hit him at his weak spot and finish it."

"I could if I could find his weakness!" Rex hissed, "But he has some kind of invasive nanite programming. Guys, it's trying to get _inside_ me."

" _Are fucking you kidding me_?" Noah sounded really freaked, "Well, get away from it, don't let it get close!"

Rex didn't need to be told that. He completely avoided contact with the Meta-EVO, dodging its attacks and giving it a wide berth.

Rex's first cut into its arms must have activated its invasive programming, because now as he brushed with it, he could sense thousands, millions of nanites eager to swarm him from where they touched.

Rex counted off his options. He couldn't fire at it or it will absorb his energy blasts and use it to power its own attacks. He couldn't exchange physical blows with it either. So how was he going to take it down? To top it off, Rex felt thoroughly flat lined. His basic desire for survival was the only thing keeping his body moving, despite its screams of fatigue and ache. The only other option was for Rex to chug rocks at it. So he forced another good portion of his nanites to form a giant hand like a crane. But before he could dig into ground for his rocky ammo, the Nanite robot caught the back of Rex's hover bike.

Rex cursed aloud and released his bike before the alien nanites could intrude him. He dropped fifteen feet into a roll, pissed that his nanites were wasted just like that. Though he could recall his nanites and reuse them for another build, a good portion would be lost with every transition of form. And he was too exhausted to tap into his Omega-1 to generate a fresh batch of nanites instantaneously.

 _What should I?_ Rex was running out of ideas. And he didn't have time to properly think it over.

A large shadow suddenly loomed over as a giant slab of earth, broken off from the ground, swallowed him in darkness and smashed atop him before he could escape, the force crushing.

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*Sir Anthony Haden-Scott:

A member of the consortium. Gained one-fifth of the Meta-nanites' power and has control over matter and energy. Dynamo-Meta is the name I've coined for his EVO form.

+FYI - Recap from my previous chapters+

*Invasive nanites were first discovered by Providence during the oil rig mission. The new type of nanites were installed in bombs that were a challenge to defuse since Rex could not manipulate them. Providence Science Division were also not able to uncover more since the nanites disintegrated after the bombs disarmed.


	21. Friends in high places

**Chapter 21: Friends in high places**

(A surprise appearance!)

* * *

Every fibre in Rex's body screamed from the crushing force. He was sure his bones would have all broken if his instinctive, internal defense mechanism had not kicked in on time. His nanites encased his entire body with a metal suit right before the ten-ton chunk fell atop him. Still, the impact was forceful enough to knock the breath from his body.

Noah was screaming from his ear, and even Six was shouting after him in frenzy, so Rex guessed that they must have felt the ground tremor, even if they had not seen the rock slam over him.

Knowing that, Rex couldn't let himself remain stuck like this. His teammates still depended on him, trusted him to deal with the Meta-EVO.

"Rex, I'm serious, you better fucking answer me. I'm not going to let you go down on my first official mission with Providence. You hear me? Or you're going to owe me for life!"

Rex chuckled weakly on hearing Noah's words.

 _That's right, I can't let things go down like this._

Rex wasn't sure how he managed to find the strength, but he pushed the heavy weight off him, back screaming against the strain. The rocky slab fell backwards and collided onto the ground, sending another tremor through the earth. Rex massaged his sore and aching back, surprised he could still stand up, though he bowed over like a willow tree.

"I hear ya, Noah. Don't worry, I'll be accompanying you through the rest of your missions," Rex announced through ragged breathing.

"Rex! Are you okay man?" Noah's relief seemed to wash over Rex, and he found the will to stand up straighter.

"Yea, I'm cool. Still kicking."

"Good to hear that, Rex. Now come on over to the pass. Dynamo-Meta just zoomed overhead. I think he's after Donny," Six ordered.

"Be there pronto."

It was easier said than done, of course. Rex had never flown more slowly on his hover bike than he did now. He was like a grandpa on wheels, barely even reaching half of his top speed. But it was the max that he could push himself.

Donny was in the backseat of Shadow's jeep, hightailing down the snaking alley that cut through the ravine with a jagged face soaring upwards from the desert ground in the color of burnt sienna, pointy cliffs like claws reaching for the sky.

Six was in another jeep, racing behind them alongside Razarul jeeps, while Dynamo-Meta quickly passed overhead.

"Rex, get your game back on. Shadow needs our assistance," Six gave his usual, cheerless pep talk. This time, it didn't nearly give Rex enough nanite rise and Rex knew that the rock slam plus the broken ankle had taken more out of Rex than anyone realized.

"I will once I get to that Parasitic Anthony."

"Good, because I've been itching for another blow at it since just now," Noah shouted from another jeep that pulled up beside him.

Without warning, Noah suddenly jumped aboard, which was a feat since he lugged the bulky and heavy missile launcher with him.

Noah was unbalanced when he got on and faltered, about to fall off sideways so Rex quickly caught his waist and pulled him close.

"You're crazy, you know that?" Rex chastised him for daring that stunt at high speeds, though he couldn't keep a grin off his face.

"Yea, and that's why we're buddies," Noah pointed out as he repositioned himself for better leverage. He plunked down on the seat behind Rex, sticking right behind Rex's butt since there wasn't much space. He pressed his thighs against Rex so he could hold his balance while he loaded the missile launcher.

"Sorry," he continued, tone suddenly sombre. "I missed watching your back earlier," Noah apologized, sounding hard on himself.

Rex shook his head, knowing that Noah felt like he had let him down.

"No sweat. You were tied up too. Besides, you made it for this ride. Just make sure you've got the launcher steady."

"Of course, and I won't miss."

Rex could imagine Noah's smirk.

Right as they entered the pass, Noah fired the launcher, and Rex watched the missile speed over his shoulder. The missile hit Dynamo-Meta square in the back, hurling it forwards till it crashed onto the ground in a giant cloud of sand and dirt.

"Score!" Rex punched fists in the air then half turned to knock knuckles with Noah.

"You're the best wingman a guy could ever ask," Rex praised and exchanged grins with Noah.

"Rex, save the loving speech for later. Noah, fire another one, now," Six ordered right as Dynamo-Meta got up.

Noah did as commanded, firing off another missile but this time, Dynamo-Meta caught it and swung it back towards Rex. It swerved sideways slightly, slamming against the rocky wall of the ravine instead, just ten yards from the duo.

"Oh no!" Rex's cries were drowned out by the thunderous rumble of a rocky avalanche tumbling down the valley.

Clouds of dust rushed downwards from the avalanche, hitting Rex and Noah like a tornado blast. Noah flung one arm around Rex's chest, clinging tight while Rex forced his hover bike forwards and kept it facing straight or they'll be blown away by the force.

Finally, the monstrous winds died down and Rex shook off the zillions of sand and dirt that settled over him and Noah.

Catching the sounds of commotions coming over from Six's end, Rex was relieved that they were all right. To be sure, Rex radioed in and asked if anyone got caught in the avalanche.

Six answered between coughs that he and the other Providence troops were alright, before Donny's frantic yelling cut into the receiver at Shadow's end.

"Calm down you… metal-being," Donny was shouting, suggesting that Dynamo-Meta was close to him, "I know there's a brain in there somewhere. Tell me, how much is Razarul paying you for? I can pay triple."

"The Razarul are not my boss. I'm merely on loan to them, from the Modifier. They have both agreed that it is best to get you out of the way. "

"I don't understand. I'm his corporate partner!" Donny sounded confused. "I helped him find clients and acted as his liaison. Who the hell does he thinks makes money for him?"

"Regrettably, for your act of folly of sabotaging an old associate of Modifier, he sends me to inform you that your services are no longer needed."

"Well who is that old associate? I don't know anything!"

"Certainly, you do. Because of you, a 2nd member of the Consortium is now captured."

At those words, Rex guessed that Dynamo-Meta was referring to Roswell –Meta-Elemental.

"Sorry Anthony, we can't let you take Donny's life. We need him locked up," Six opposed, then sounds of gunfire and clashes of plummeting rock poured through the communicator.

"Shit! Hang tight, Noah," Rex ordered, then forcefully kicked his engine into high gear.

Noah pressed his whole body flushed against Rex's back and even through their clothing, Rex could feel Noah's heartbeat hammering wildly and his chest galloping like wild horses on the loose. Rex shared the tension that Noah felt and the pulsing adrenaline that coursed through them. Perhaps body to body, the thrum of Noah's energetic pulse was contagious, or perhaps Rex had enough respite for his Omega-1 to charge up. Whatever the reason, Rex felt his nanite levels suddenly spike, as if he'd just been uploaded with active nanites from the nanite storage facility.

The scene up ahead was almost post-apocalyptic. Piles of rocks and broken chunks from the cliff face littered the ravine, with Captain Calan, Six, Shadow and the other providence officers leaping around, taking cover while trying to get a shot at Dynamo-Meta. The Meta-EVO meanwhile, was like a manic on rampage, flinging chunks of rocks in all directions.

Closing in another thirty yards, Rex made his plan.

"Noah, shoot again and I'll follow up with a rock slam."

Noah wasted no time launching another missile at the same time that Rex heaved a giant slab from the ground with his giant nanite hands.

Dynamo-Meta caught the missile again and diverted it back round to hit the incoming chunk. But it was not quick enough, or had not counted on Rex to quickly follow up with another giant chunk of rock that hurtled towards it, driven by one of Rex's giant super boots.

Noah was on Rex's back, arms and legs clinging round Rex's body through the crazy roller coaster ride. In swift precision and timing, Rex shifted out from his hover bike to guide the second rocky slab with his good, super powered leg, driving it right into the Dynamo-Meta's head, causing it to fall heavily backwards against a rocky wall and breaking through it. Then Rex re-shifted both legs back into the hover bike form, continuing forwards across the broken wall, with Noah reseated behind him.

Noah panted against Rex's nape, arms shaking over his shoulders, hands still fisting his shirt. Rex was amused that though Noah was dead nervous, he didn't oppose Rex's plan. Rex was completely pumped that he executed the move perfectly with Noah still at his back –even if Noah had to abandon the missile launcher in order to hold onto him.

At times like this, it amazed Rex how Noah read his body language so well. All Rex said was a single line before putting out his moves and Noah simply coordinated with him, as if they were of one body and one mind.

Again, Rex was reminded how good it felt to have Noah fighting alongside him.

Feeling empowered, Rex was ready to chug more rocks at Dynamo-Meta, but suddenly, a hurricane of rocks swirling at high velocities charged straight for it, beating it into the rock pile on the ground.

The sound of bombarding rocks was deafening, and the impact seemed to rocket the air molecules around, sending the air to thrum with frantic energy against Rex's skin.

"What the hell is that!" Noah cried over his shoulder.

Steadily approaching, hovering mid-air between the ravines, was another EVO that also looked eerily like Dynamo-Meta.

 _What? Two, Dynamo-Meta?_ Rex was shocked.

 _No…_

Observing carefully, the one that just appeared looked more like what Rex remembered seeing since their last battle a little over three years back. This was in the size and form as exactly as how it should be.

Studying its attack, Rex noted that though it was smaller in build at eight feet, it packed a more powerful punch, since it directly manipulated air molecules to shoot rocks and lift its own weight.

The situation was now confusing, since this Dynamo-Meta lookalike seemed to be targeting the other. All the same, Rex tensed, becoming wary, as two Meta-EVOs meant twice the destruction. Rex pondered if he could validate who was the original, but not like it made a difference since Rex would likely have to take down both in any case. And god forbid if they decided to join hands…

"What is this? Who's this son of a bitch stealing my name and look?" came the electronic voice that the real Dynamo-Meta should have sounded.

Dynamo-Meta was faceless, but from its enraged tones, Rex could tell it was thoroughly pissed.

With that, it confirmed that the earlier one was a fake, which explained why it came with so many upgrades and attack patterns that were so different from Dynamo-Meta. It was probably a Nanite robot that Modifier created and modelled after Dynamo-Meta.

"Right, so that's the real Anthony Meta-EVO. Since he's attacking only the fake, do we have to get involved in this?" Noah asked dryly behind him, arms still tightly wound around his torso.

Rex sure hoped so, because it would be hard to deal with both of them at the same time.

Captain Calan dashed his hopes.

"Keep them busy, Rex," he ordered as he climbed over rock piles with Six and Shadow, dragging Donny in tow.

"Well, they'll be keeping themselves busy with each other," Rex replied humorlessly.

Much to his chagrin, Donny suddenly screamed.

"Anthony! Come and get me, quickly!"

Dynamo-Meta turned his head in Donny's direction and swept a gaze over the rest.

"Tsk, pesky Rex and pesky Providence," he regarded them coldly in an irate tone, just noticing them, "I could live better with less of the likes of you."

Then he waved his palms around the air in a commanding fashion like a magician, sending huge rocks flying towards them.

"Hang on, Noah," Rex warned and ducked them whilst he launched forwards with both fists supersized, flying towards Dynamo-Meta. Since it was the original, Anthony-Meta-EVO, Rex didn't have to be afraid of dealing with parasitic nanites. He could freely land punches on it without worry, hence, he gave it his all.

However, Dynamo-Meta caught his wrists with a mini whirlwind that sent Rex and Noah spiraling away.

"I'll crush you this time, Rex!" Dynamo-Meta commanded.

"Ooffph!" Rex cried aloud, then quickly recalled his hover bike and braced the cliff face with his good leg before they slammed into it. Thankfully, quick on the rebound, Rex used that momentum to kick off, shooting straight at Dynamo-Meta again.

This time, Rex was quick to cut through the whirlwind blasts with his giant nanite sword and continued thrusting forwards towards Dynamo-Meta's power core. Dynamo-Meta deftly caught his blade and fire erupted on its grasps, running upward along Rex's sword.

Rex violently wretched his weapon out of Dynamo-Meta's grip but at that moment, Noah leapt towards the Meta-EVO in the most brilliant, somersault that Rex had ever seen anyone do.

Noah landed on Meta-EVO's back and out from nowhere, he pulled out a dagger and sliced through one of the connecting valves at its power core.

It gave an angry roar as flames from its right hand died, having been disconnected from its main power source. It plucked Noah off its back, flinging him towards the cliff face. Rex ignored his broken ankle that instant –or rather, on instinct, he'd his Slyder rolled out beneath his feet and a nanite cast formed around his ankle, allowing him to zip towards his buddy and catch him.

Noah yelped as Rex caught him, princess style.

"I was wrong, you're not just crazy – you're _absolutely_ crazy, do you know that?" Rex yelled at Noah, voice shaking. It was so close, _so_ _close_ –just another few inches more and Noah would have smashed his bones and cracked his skull against the cliff face.

"Thanks, I'll take that as a compliment," Noah smirked, hands going behind Rex's neck.

Noah had that cheeky gleam in his eyes then, looking confident, as if what he did was nothing more than a fearless whim to him –a daredevil, just like Rex. Yet at the same time, his shaky breath told Rex that Noah was also edgy and terrified. Of course, any ordinary guy would, when facing off a fire-shooting and rock-wielding Meta-EVO. But only someone like Noah was crazy enough, bold enough and awesome enough to pull off the stunt that he just did.

It was so epic, Rex had the overwhelming urge to kiss him, just so that he can release the excited energy coursing through him that was amplified by Noah's sensational stunt.

Rex resisted of course –attempting a dumb antic like that was the worst thing to do at a time like this. In fact, a part of Rex's brain nagged at the audacity of that thought, bewildered that he even had such an unhealthy urge towards his best friend, and a guy at that.

Circling back, he could feel EVO-Anthony's deathly, laser glare.

"I have enough!" he roared, then aimed an open palm towards them.

A whirlwind raced over, so Rex's defence spiked. However, instead of whipping him, it suddenly zipped overhead, heading straight for Donny. Rex was semi amazed as he watched the whirlwind carry Donny off like Dorothy in the books, so unexpected and swift that Six and the others couldn't do anything. Rex however, snapped out of it quickly. He wasn't going to let Donny escape so easily.

"Oh no, you don't!" Rex yelled and zipped over, stealing Donny from the tornado-carrier.

"Damn you Rex! This isn't your business! Outta my way!"

Rex dodged a blast of tornado that Dynamo-Meta threw at him, before the nanite robot commanded its full attention again.

Six and the others did well to stay far away from the rock chugging contest between those two power players, running after Rex.

"Wow, since when were you so chummy with Anthony?" Rex pointedly asked, one hand gripping Donny by his shirt collar.

Rex had already let Noah down on his Slyder to stand on his own feet, and Donny was now sandwiched between them.

"Well, what can I say? For a guy like me, it's normal to have friends in high places."

Rex scoffed. "Dude, drop the shop talk. Blaster Prince had better lines than you."

Donny remained stubbornly silent so Noah snatched his shirt from Rex's hand and pushed him outwards.

"Talk, or drop," Noah threatened.

"Gahhh! Alright, alright, relax kid," Donny exclaimed in panic, grabbing onto Noah's wrist as he stared in horror at the steep drop. Then he grinned as he answered, "Since I got rid of my old chum. He's just returning the favor."

"What? You mean Roswell and him were enemies? I thought they belonged to the same happy gang," Rex pressed, confused.

"Oh they worked together in the past alright, but only when it was necessary. But I wouldn't have called them 'friends'. In fact, they hardly got along –my father hardly got along with anyone."

"So you expect us to believe that he came to save you because of that? You must have a way to contact him, otherwise, how would he know where and when to come for you?" Noah interrogated.

"Well, it wasn't easy to find him, but with my underground contacts, it's not impossible. When I heard what happened at West Africa, I knew those slippery Razarul bastards had played me out and got a mighty weapon for themselves directly from Modifier. I knew these guys were gonna screw me one day, so I had to get Anthony. He's the only other one tough enough to handle Modifier's creations, or even Modifier himself."

Right as Donny finished talking, there was a huge sound of explosion and Rex halted so he could turn back to see what was happening. A dramatic wall of fire gushed upwards towards the sky, cloaking the gigantic silhouette of the nanite robot.

A raucous laugh tore from Donny's lips.

"See there, that's the real deal, not a third rate replica. It's not quite the same, is it?" Donny commented in an obnoxious tone.

Rex and Noah stared as the torrent of fire simmered down, revealing the slumped form of the Nanite robot. Even from the distance, they could tell that it was badly charred and burnt, with hot smoke rising off its sizzling armor. Such incredibly powerful fire blast –Rex supposed Dynamo-Meta must have come here with its power core fully loaded and had fired all its power through the remaining connecting outlet.

"Rex, take Donny and keep moving!"

Six's urgent tones snapped Rex out from his stoning. Dynamo-Meta was now speeding straight towards them, coming to rescue Donny. Donny gave a manic laughter as if he had won.

"Shut up, Donny! I've kicked his butt before, and I'm gonna kick his butt again," Rex growled then started zipping ahead.

Without warning, Donny roughly jerked backwards and dropped off the Slyder. Noah got pulled along, stance unstable, but Rex swiftly caught the back of Noah's shirt and yanked him back into his chest.

"Noah!" Rex breathed aloud, chest galloping a thousand miles per second from panic.

"Rex! Donny he –"

Arms still wound tight around Noah, Rex gritted his teeth then dived downwards, racing against gravity to grab hold of Donny.

Just five feet within reach, another whirlwind caught Donny, zipping him far ahead at top knots, leaving behind Donny's raucous, echoing laughter.

"Shit!" Rex cursed aloud and whirled back around, but found that Dynamo-Meta was already missing.

* * *

 **End of chapter**


	22. Sizzling Recounts

**Chapter 22: Sizzling Recounts**

(Rex reflects on the mission against the Razarul, feeling moody, until Noah comes in to cheer him up)

* * *

Rex rested his forehead against the tiled wall of the upper showers in Providence headquarters, feeling exhausted. He was careful not to lean his weight on his fractured right ankle. It was in a cast and his foot was bagged up in a plastic to keep from getting wet.

He hated how he carelessly let the Nanite robot crack his bone. Even if Rex had nanites that repaired his injuries nearly three to five times faster than the average person, for fractures like these, Holiday predicted that he would still need a few days to completely heal. Things like this reminded him that though he was strong, he was not invincible.

The Middle East mission team have just returned back to base roughly four hours ago in the wee hours of the morning, flying via jets that picked them up from the camp. The heads of Razarul and most of their men had been successfully detained and handed over to Interpol, so the mission was counted as a success.

Even so, Rex couldn't feel his usual cheer. Unlike how he'd usually stay behind in the main control room to hang out with the Providence team, Rex was lackluster. Preferring to have a quiet moment to himself, he took to the showers near his bedroom when the debrief was over. He did not feel up to joining in Bobo's continued sarcasm and criticisms of how he was made to suffer under the oppressing heat, nor listen to Holiday and her science team debate on the parasitic nanites he had encountered, which was similar to the nanite bomb. He wasn't in the mood to interrupt Six's and Captain Calan's report to White Knight and their discussion on the mission performance either.

All he wanted, was to be alone. To think. To sort his thoughts. To wallow in depressing thoughts.

Two hundred odd men. Over ninety percent injured. Thirty percent heavily injured. Five percent with life threatening injuries.

Rex gritted his teeth and banged his fists on the tiles. Time and time again, he had asked himself many times, why did people have to get hurt. Why wasn't he strong enough to prevent that? And why do bastards keep returning to hurt others?

The water was cold and poured at full blast, raining over his head like icicles. Rex usually preferred a hot bath, but this time, he didn't mind. He hoped that the freezing waters would keep his brain awake, or at least hammer away at his skull enough for the clogs in his brain to figure things out.

Modifier. Roswell. Anthony. Donny.

It was troubling how they were all connected to Modifier.

Besides, the Consortium had actually split up and laid low since Providence captured Gravity-Meta –Reddick – over three years ago. Hence, it was too much of a coincidence that the old members were now reappearing one after the other.

Rex couldn't help but feel wary. Something was deliberately stirring them, and he would bet his two cents that Modifier was the one behind the scenes.

"Rex? You in there?" Noah's concerned tone came over the cubicle door, echoing slightly since there were only a few other guys in the upper shower room.

"Yea, I'm here," Rex gave a lackluster reply.

"C'mon dude, you've been in there forever, get out," Noah ordered, voice sounding really close, like he was just outside the door.

Rex cast a glance down and saw that Noah's sneakers were right outside.

Rex was too riddled with a flood of depressing questions to think properly before he opened the door, grabbed Noah and dragged him into the cubicle with him.

Noah yelped in surprise while Rex shut the door, pushing him flush against it.

"Rex, you idiot! I'm getting wet. What the hell are you think-" Noah stopped midsentence when Rex buried his head against Noah's shoulder, arms going around his back.

Rex didn't care who might have been around to look, wondering why the hell Rex had pulled Noah into his shower. What was important was he had Noah right by his side. Rex breathed deeply, soaking in Noah's warmth. For some reason, just having Noah close to him seemed to calm him down. Noah like always, knew exactly what to do. His arms went around his waist and he held him quietly for what seemed like forever.

"C'mon Rex, tell me what's on your mind," Noah finally asked in a tentative tone.

"Nothing," Rex replied stubbornly, or rather, the thoughts weighed so heavily on his mind that he didn't know how to talk about them.

"The hard way, huh?" Noah sounded resigned, "Fine, then I'll make a guess. If I'm right, then you'll talk."

Well, it was hardly a no brainer what Rex was worried about – the entire Providence mission team was knocked off their socks and jittery all through the journey back to base. Everyone had the same pressing worries on their minds, on top of cradling their various wounds and injuries.

Rex had been the only one appearing optimistic – a front he put up so he wouldn't curl into a depressing ball. Noah however, seemed to see right through his mask, since he kept looking at Rex with a worried gaze.

"There really isn't anything I can hide from you, can I?" Rex asked dryly, pushing back slightly to regard Noah.

Noah gave an amused grin.

"Only because you're a terrible actor. You tried too hard to be in good spirits, that's how I know. And that crap about needing a long bath instead of feeding Holiday a long-winded, exaggerated tale of your glorious fight –I knew right away you were going to hole yourself up here. God only knows the waterworks you've doing."

"Hey! I'm not a crybaby!" Rex protested, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Whatever, you still act like a baby at times," Noah goaded, tilting his head back, eyes gleaming a challenging glint, "Or why would you keep your thoughts to yourself? Scared that other people might look down at you if they knew the mess that went up inside your head?"

And that was it. Buttons pushed, Rex argued back, putting his anxieties into perspective and laying them out factually so his ego wouldn't have to take a bruising from Noah's insufferable words.

Damn how Noah could coddle him with wool over his eyes then drive him up the wall the next instant.

Rex was struggling to keep his breathing even, huffing agitatedly. He hated showing his weakness, hated admitting he was a coward just like any other guy. But because he was made into this extraordinary EVO, Rex felt burdened with expectations, not just from Providence, but from the rest of the world, to _be_ the hero and _act_ the hero.

Rex felt on the defensive, ready to knock back Noah's comeback.

But instead, Noah's gaze softened, and he wore the sweetest smile.

"There, see? It wasn't so hard to talk about it, was it?"

Just like that, Rex's disgruntles fizzled out, and he realized Noah was actually trying to cheer him up rather than edge him on. Without noticing, Rex's tension in his shoulders had already ebbed away. How was it that Noah always manage to lighten Rex's worries and make him feel better?

Rex was thankful towards Noah for always being there for him to help him through the toughest of times. Even while Noah was schooling, he was only just a phone call away if they couldn't meet.

Rex gave up and simply laughed, shaking his head.

"Damn Noah, you know me too well, I just can't hide anything from you," Rex commented with a lopsided grin.

Noah quirked a brow, haughty smile returning.

"Yea, I know, I can clearly see that."

Noah's suggestive tones suddenly alerted Rex to the fact that he was still completely naked, with Noah also in the cubicle.

Even if Noah had respectfully, not looked anywhere downwards or travelled his gaze anywhere else but Rex's face, Rex was pretty sure that this scenario was utterly risqué… and _dangerous_.

Seriously, what the hell was he thinking? Dragging Noah into the shower like this even after knowing Noah's sexual preference? All he wanted was for Noah to be close to him, drawing comfort from his best friend's presence so besides that, he hadn't thought of much else.

To top it off, Rex even hugged Noah not just a few minutes ago, naked cock pressed against Noah's front and all!

Mortified, Rex cleared his throat nervously, feeling his hairs stand at the back of his nape. He quickly cupped his groin and took a step back, noticing that they were still standing too close in this awkward situation.

Well, at least Noah was dressed, otherwise Rex wouldn't know where to look, and to Noah's credit, he didn't add to Rex's embarrassment.

"And, if you're done being a baby, get out the bath and into the Sahara for 'Raiders of the Ark.' We've still got three more quests to compete before the final showdown. Unless you're giving up and admitting that I'm the better gamer."

Rex bristled at Noah's taunt, forgetting his embarrassment.

"There's no way in hell," Rex snubbed in low tones, pressing Noah's shoulder against the door and bringing up a fist with his other hand. "Don't forget that my high score is way above yours. You think you have the chance to beat me with the remaining stages? Fat chance!"

Noah frowned, looking pissed then changed to a smug face.

"Chill Rex, you're taking the game way too seriously. Even if I lost, who cares?" Noah shrugged, "Just as long as I know I was awesome when it comes to actual battles."

Rex gave a wordless reply for the next few seconds, stumped by those words that couldn't be closer to the truth – he recalled that after the mission debrief, both Shadow and even Six, had praised Noah for his good performance.

Thinking back, Rex was captivated by the way Noah moved like a pro as if he had years of experience in combat. It was like Noah had fire at his heels and turbo springs for legs. Rex had always known that Noah was a greater jumper and sprinter, with quick, agile reflexes smoother than a Ferrari, judging by how well he played basketball. Though Rex was the one who had more physical action battling EVOs and crazy robotic maniacs, Rex had never beaten Noah at the sport, not even once. It was cool Noah proved he could take his skills out of court and into Rex's combat playground too.

Thank god Noah joined Providence, for he was sure one hell of a fine addition to the combat team. Aside from Six, Rex has never seen anyone else attempt a back flip that was as smooth as what Noah had done when he jumped atop Dynamo-Meta's back. Rex never even knew that Noah had moves like that.

The image replayed itself in Rex's mind, emphasizing the graceful arc of Noah's form, his fluid movements and his trained leg muscles bulging with tensed control. The sight invoked both envy and admiration, and brought such an adrenaline rush. Before he knew it, Rex's chest was now thundering like he was reliving the action of the mission, body trembling with excitement, remembering Noah's weight on his back and the determined look on his face as they fought side by side.

It was so hot –the blood charging inside Rex's veins, even though he was only just recalling their fight. He swore that steam must have rose off his burning back from where the cold shower poured, as it seemed foggier all of a sudden.

"Rex?" Noah questioned, looking concerned so Rex was alerted that he must look very strange now because for sure, Rex was feeling very, _very_ strange.

There was no stopping the pounding of his pulse once it was racing, until he ran it off or burnt himself out with some mad action. Every muscle shook from the effort of holding back, restraining from the insane urge of diving for the closest physical release who was Noah.

 _Why?_ Why was all his adrenaline rushing downwards and stirring his south?

In that moment, Noah suddenly glanced downward and it was all too fast for Rex to hide his raging hard-on.

Noah seemed taken back, looking stunned, face quickly coloring, adam's apple bobbing like he was swallowing hard. Hell, Rex was the one who should be embarrassed, which he was, face heated up so hot like someone had rubbed two clothes iron against his cheeks. God! How he wanted to split the wall open behind him with his nanite fist and wedge himself inside to hide from Noah before this gets more embarrassing for either of them.

Noah remained rooted where he was, eyes searching Rex's face.

 _Damn!_ Was Noah going to keep standing there?

"You're hard," Noah stated the obvious, voice trembling ever so slightly. It made Rex nervous, not sure how to read his reply. Rex hoped he could just pass it off as a guy's natural phenomenon of an inappropriately-timed boner, but he only breathed in and out in reply, mute and dumb.

Then Noah licked his lips, and Rex suddenly had the craziest thought that Noah could give him head.

 _Shit._ Rex inhaled sharply to cleanse himself of such despicable thoughts. He reminded himself that just because Noah was gay, didn't mean that he liked sucking off any Tom, Dick or Harry.

On the other coin, he became staggered to realize that he didn't find the idea of _Noah_ sucking him off, in any way repulsive.

Rex breathed heavily, feeling the pressure within his burgeoning cock escalate to near bursting point. Unable to control himself any longer, Rex shamefully gripped his cock.

"Noah, I'm sorry, but could you _please_ give me some time alone?" Rex rasped out, but to his horror, he abruptly cummed, wrecked with violent spasms while shooting thick streams of milky fluid from his cock, spattering all over Noah.

* * *

 **End of chapter**


	23. Wayward Suggestions

**Chapter 23: Wayward suggestions**

(Rex hits a dilemma over his…ehem, _wayward_ actions… as it seems Noah is avoiding him! )

* * *

Noah was avoiding him.

Rex was sure of it. And he could only blame himself for it. Just a week ago, he shot his cum _all over_ Noah in the bathroom.

God it was _horrible_.

Rex's face burned with shame just remembering. He wished it was just a bad dream –but the memories were too real and wouldn't go away, replaying in his head over and over like a bad comedy. Noah's stunned face, turning into embarrassment as he wiped the speck of cum that clung to his cheeks with the back of his hand.

Noah, spinning round and wordlessly leaving, _fleeing_ from the sordid friend who was Rex.

God! Rex was going to roast in hell.

Rex groaned inwardly for the umpteen time. Man, he was terrible, cumming all over his best friend.

As soon as Rex cleaned himself up and mustered the courage, he had quickly found Noah to apologize. Noah was a picture perfect God then, all forgiving, smiling a little awkwardly, still embarrassed, but brushing off the incident like it was nothing.

Rex was relieved then, glad that Noah didn't hate him.

But since then, Noah suspiciously held him at arm's length. He'd back off noticeably whenever Rex got to close, or he'd shake off Rex's arm off his shoulder. He'd also stopped coming over Rex's room after training to play video games, and avoided having lunch with him.

Rex was sure that Noah was secretly disgusted with him, but was too nice to say it.

Of course, who wouldn't be grossed out receiving his _buddy's cum shot?!_

Hell, if it had happened to Rex, it might have been a bloody nightmare. Rex was certain his skin would crawl for weeks and would avoid that person like he had leprosy.

Rex counted himself lucky that Noah was at least still talking to him like normal. That was, if he counted dialogues of less than five sentences between them as 'normal'. They used to be able to talk for hours.

"Argh!" Rex cried aloud in the middle of the walkway, hands cradling his head in agony, not caring about the weird looks thrown at him by the other staff walking by.

There was no way that Rex could let things continue like this.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

At lunchtime, Rex headed over to the canteen on the lower floor that was closest to the combat troops' sleeping quarters, determined to talk it out with Noah, once and for all. Maybe even convince Noah to punch him a few times if it would make Noah feel better and truly forgive him.

The cafeteria was crowded, and it was clear by the uniforms worn that most of the staff there were combat troops. It was to be expected, since this was the mass dining hall on the lowest floor, making it closest to the ground floor training grounds.

Even in the crowd, Rex could easily pick out Noah – it was his shade of blond hair that was so unique and so specific.

Rex took a deep breath to quell the panic suddenly rising up his chest and zoomed in on his best friend, who crossed the canteen mid-way.

Rex strode over.

"Noah!"

Noah whipped his head round so fast that Rex was amazed it didn't fly off his shoulders. Panic flitted pass Noah's face momentarily before he gave a tight smile.

It was enough to throw Rex's head into chaos. Rex felt like binding constricts suddenly wrapped around his lungs, making it hard to breathe.

 _I am sooo not imagining this. Noah hates me. Oh god he hates me. He hates me. He hates me…_

Rex forced himself not to panic and to not hyperventilate.

Being Noah's best friend for so long, Rex could tell that Noah wasn't quite happy to see him here.

"Hey Noah," Rex started, feeling oddly tongue tied, "Getting lunch?"

Noah nodded, looking a bit stiff.

"Yea, I'm sitting with the Delta guys."

"Cool, can I join?"

"Sure, they're right over there," Noah pointed and backed away, giving Rex the sense that he was trying to put space between them.

"Nice," Rex caught his wrist, "Let's go grab bites together."

"Crap, of all my luck. Would you mind not declaring _your need to fuck each other_ , in front other people.?"

"Huh? What the hell?" Rex snapped his head to the side to find Andrew's heated gaze from a few steps away, and wearing the ugliest snarl second only to White Knight. He was blonde-haired like Noah, but slightly darker and with tons of big freckles speckling his face like dirt spluttered all over him. His brows are high and fine, shaped in a high arch, which added to his frigid expression. Rex didn't chat with him much since there was too many Providence staff, but he sure as hell don't remember pissing him off.

"What was that supposed to mean?"

Andrew cocked his head slightly as he approached, staring between Noah and Rex with an appalled expression that both perplexed and infuriated Rex.

"I meant exactly as what I say," Andrew crossed his arms, "Two men _taking bites_ out of each other –that's gross."

Rex bristled, shoulders tensing as he glared at Andrew, mirroring Noah. Rex understood the sleazy suggestion Andrew was making, but he wasn't going to let some asshole mess up his words.

"Hey Andrew, I don't know what got into your pants, but seriously, don't go twisting up other people's words. I was just talking to Noah about lunch."

"My god, enough!" The guy pinched between his brows and looked more agitated.

"And here I am trying to tell you not to ruin my lunch!" Andrew's voice raised, drawing attention from a couple of groups at nearby tables which quieted down, turning heads to their direction, watching the spectacle.

"Is it not enough for the two of you to be fucking around in the shower room? Do you have to announce your gross habits at the canteen?"

Rex and Noah both flinched, scalded by the nasty memory.

"Look, it wasn't like that – at the bathroom, no matter how it appeared. Rex is my best friend," Noah spoke up loudly, tone sharp, biting.

"Funny the sounds suggest otherwise."

Rex felt his face heating up, and could see the exposed skin of Noah's nape reddening.

Suddenly, it crossed Rex's mind that Noah could be facing some harassment over it. The upper showers were usually quite empty, but a few guys were there at the time, likely because the lower showers must be packed.

No doubt it was anyone's imagination what the two of them were doing together in the same cubicle, especially since when Rex cummed, he had also let out an embarrassing, gargantuan moan.

Rex hadn't actually counted on anyone passing rumors.

 _Was this why Noah was avoiding me?_

Rex felt his blood run cold.

 _Oh shit, what have I done?_

Surely, he must have caused Noah a lot of trouble.

A loud 'harumph' came from behind.

"Hey Andrew, something I can help you with?" Matthew came up to them, cocking a challenging brow, "Like telling everyone what a dick head you are?"

Andrew was not fazed.

"That isn't anything new – Rex and Noah _going at it_ , on the other hand, is fresh news," he gave a smirk, "I can't say I'm surprised, considering how they're joined at the hip since forever. Just wanted to make sure they don't spread their bad habits around. We don't need three Nathans around. Not all of us are into revolting stuff like them – "

"Shut up! Don't say such bullshit about Noah!"

Rex exploded, no longer able to keep his temper in check. Then he stared at Noah in surprise, realizing that Noah had echoed his exact same words, except that Noah had said Rex's name at the end.

They stared at each other with widened gazes for a moment, before Noah continued in an exasperated tone.

"Looked, I had cleared this with several guys already – I may be gay, but Rex is not. So don't you dare insult him like this."

Before Andrew could retort, Jackson clapped his hands, catching their attention. He came over, nodding at Rex and Noah.

"That was excellent comradeship and very admirable," Jackson spoke up loudly in a clear voice, "No matter what other people think, the important thing is that your friendship is strong and you have each other's back."

"Oh right, sure they have each other's back – _fucking in and out_ , I'm sure."

Rex wanted to plough Andrew's face with his fist. But he held back when he felt Noah's hand slipping over his clenched ones.

" _Actually_ ," Jackson cocked a brow, usual jovial expression suddenly hardening, "If you mean to twist my words and take it out of context, then let me put it bluntly. In the end, who you fuck with and who you got a problem of who's fucking who, is _not_ important. At the battlefield, when the enemy is fucking you, you'll _depend_ on your fellow officer to save your ass and fuck the life out of the enemy. So I advise that we all practice a little more tolerance and civility towards each other, understand, _Sergeant_?"

Rex thought it was somewhat boorish the way Jackson put it, but Andrew seemed to get the point, as he stiffened and looked suitably chastised.

Or it could just be due to the fact that Jackson had addressed him by his rank. Andrew automatically snapped his heels together and did a salute like it was a trigger well drilled into the soldier's mind.

"Yes sir, your point is well taken. I apologize for my poor attitude earlier," Adrian conceded in a surprisingly mild manner. He still didn't look too happy, but at least he nodded once in Noah's and Rex's direction as if in a small show of apology. Then he promptly spun on his heels and left.

Drama ended, the surrounding officers returned to their meals and their initial conversations at their own tables.

"Thanks Jackson, Matthew," Rex nodded at them appreciatingly.

"Think nothing of it," Jackson clapped him hard on the back, "Just join us for lunch."

Rex nodded.

"You too, Noah, don't keep standing around here, pick up a tray and get your food before it's all gone."

Noah jolted a bit at Matthew's suggestions, but thankfully, he didn't oppose that. He mutely nodded and followed Rex side by side to the food station. The awkward silence that clung between them however, was suffocating, killing Rex. He couldn't take it anymore. Right after they've taken their food, Rex broke the silence and grabbed Noah's shoulder with his free hand, not caring there were other people moving around them.

"Noah, listen, I'm sorry, I never realized how I had caused you trouble. You've been bothered by the other officers, right?" Rex said in a rush, tone shaky with nervousness.

Since he hardly trained with the rest of the troops, he never felt their harassment. On hindsight, he really should have realized sooner and should have guessed that Noah probably had it rough since the bathroom incident.

"There were other guys bothering you, isn't it? Since _that_ thing happened… If it makes it easier for you – " Rex paused, swallowing hard at his next words, " – I _won't_ bother you anymore."

Noah gasped lightly, eyes wide, then his gaze softened, looking woeful.

"No Rex," Noah swallowed a big gulp of air, "It's not that. I don't care about what people say about me. _It's you_ , I'm worried about. I don't want them misunderstanding stuff about you that isn't true."

Noah rubbed the back of his nape.

"As it is now, there are these… _rumors_ about you because of me. So that's why, it's better if we don't hang around each other so much," there was a resigned tone in Noah's voice, like it hurt for him to say it as much as it hurt Rex to hear it.

Rex was at first relieved to hear that Noah wasn't mad at him at all. He had worried over nothing. All this time, he had been scared that something terrible has changed between them. It turned out that it was just Noah taking it upon himself to face the unpleasantness alone. Then his funny bone twisted, as he realized not two minutes ago, he too was thinking of the exact same thing.

Rex suddenly laughed, cracking up, much to Noah's confusion.

"Aww, man, to hell with it, Noah!" Rex flung an arm in the air, nearly hitting Noah's tray, "Why should we care what other people think? So what even if they get the wrong idea? They're probably just jealous they're not my number one wingman."

Heads turned, fascinated with another soap opera unfolding. Rex didn't care. Their nosy gazes, their whispering gossips – to hell with all that. There was no way Rex could survive in this stinking monochromatic place without Noah. So the rest of the guys could think whatever the hell they wanted about him. He wasn't going to let it ruin his life – the jokes he could share with Noah, the time he could chill out with him, the things he could only share with Noah and no one else –all of it was worth much more than a few measly insults from assholes.

Noah stared wordlessly at him for a long time, blue eyes almost glistening, then suddenly, they flashed brightly in the familiar sight that Rex knew all too well.

"Alright, you said it, buddy. You better not regret your words. Don't say I didn't warn ya, but be prepared to be given new names by other guys like Andrew, got it?" Noah warned in a haughty tone, smirk dancing at the tip of his mouth.

Rex cracked his neck and returned a smirk.

"No problem. Dealing with assholes are my specialty after all."

After that, the both of them headed to join Delta at the table. Rex was glad to see they looked more or less recovered from their injuries sustained at the Razarul mission, though faint bruises and scars remained, testimony of the battle. Rex thought to check up if some of their internal injuries had healed, but he never got the chance to ask as the Delta guys launched into raucous chatter.

They jokingly celebrated Rex's and Noah's _'joyous reunion'_. Rex colored, shit embarrassed, but since he didn't sense any real sarcasm behind their words, he didn't particularly mind, knowing that they were really just joking. Rex was glad that Noah was readily accepted by the rest of the team, just as they had accepted Nathan, and had a good vibe going on.

Rex knew all of them since they've been in countless missions together. And not just on mission grounds – anywhere that they bumped into Rex, they always had a friendly word, or jokes to spare. As much as they were serious and tough on missions, on off-missions, they could be as laid back and chilled, like how they were now.

They joked about Andrew, with Matthew making an exaggerated impersonation that sent the guys howling in laughter. Nathan threw in a few of his own brushes with Andrew, putting his recounts in a humorous manner.

Somehow, the conversation turned into their own sexual escapades. While they made crude jokes and broke into loud guffaws, Matthew, who sat next to Rex, turned to him and started a small chatter of their own. Matthew was one of those guys whom Rex was chummy with. They hit it off right in their first mission together several years back, mostly because they shared the same sense of humor, even though Matthew was almost a decade older.

"You know man, I've been thinking of asking you this for a long while now," Matthew suddenly dropped his voice close to a whisper and started nudging his sides, "you and Noah, there's really nothing going on between the two of you?"

"Huh?" Rex was momentarily confused, then he recognized the wicked look on Matthew's face and suddenly felt his face warm up.

"Dude! Of course not! We're just friends, really!" Rex replied harshly in as soft a tone as possible to avoid drawing attention from the others.

"Look, I don't know what kind of rumors went round about the… showers, but I can tell you, we didn't do _anything_."

"No, this doesn't have anything to do with that. It's just you guys seem close enough to… _you know_ ," Matthew made a barrel with one hand and slid it down the space in between them in meaning.

Rex's eyes balled in disbelief that Matthew would suggest such a thing. Not like Rex didn't know what was going on amongst some of the Providence officers. But Rex and Noah _wasn't_ like that – so whatever did they do to give Matthew _that_ impression?

"Hey, hey don't get so worked up," Matthew quickly patted his shoulders when he noticed Rex's distress, "I don't mean anything bad. Just wanted to let you know that it's cool with me. It's the same for me and Cody too," Matthew laughed lightly, flickering a gaze across the table to his close friend.

Rex's eyes grew larger.

"Wait, you can't mean…" Rex trailed off, lost for words.

He knew Matthew and Cody were tight – either one he bumped into, the other was right with him, like two peas in a pod. But he never imagined them doing such stuff in secret – or at least, he had yet to discover them by chance.

Rex flickered a gaze to the slighter man who had dimples when he smiled. Cody wasn't as handsome as Matthew or Noah, but Rex pretty much has heard about Cody being a huge lady killer. Hell, Cody himself, even admitted to it before. So Rex can't imagine how a self-professed skirt chaser would actually dive into a man's pants as well.

"But isn't Cody quite the womanizer?"

"Actually, that was in the past," Matthew clarified, then ran a hand over his hazelnut colored hair and crooked an eyebrow, looking more wicked.

"But that's besides the point. Even if he still is, it's not like he's attached or anything."

"Yea, but you are!" Rex pointed out, incredulous. That, was really the crucial factor why Rex had trouble understanding how they could do hanky panky with each other.

"Yea, but my girlfriend isn't around. And it's not like we screw around because we're _together_ or anything. It's just us letting off some steam, _that's all_ ," Matthew defended.

"Dude, I think you're missing the point," Rex deadpanned. "It's either you're serious about your girl, or about Cody. Which is it?"

"Rex, my man, you're the one who's missing the point here," Matthew gave a mock-resigned face and lightly punched him on the shoulder, catching Noah's attention, who looked over from opposite Rex with a curious gaze.

But the teammate sitting next to Noah suddenly hooked an arm over his neck and pulled him over, roping him to join the other guys in some kind of bet, preventing him from joining Matthew's and Rex's quiet conversation.

"Look, Cody and I are cool –we were in the same batch in Basic and have been on the same team ever since for over seven years. So we're best pals –just like you and Noah."

"Right, except that you two also fuck each other."

"C'mon, it's precisely because you're so tight, that you can get some quick release together without _misunderstanding_ any shit, ain't that right?"

Rex just stared at Matthew like he was the devil.

Because damn the man was saying dangerous stuff that stoked Rex's brain in all the wrong places.

 _Sex friends._ He flicked a gaze to Noah and gulped hard, butterflies starting to flutter in his belly.

 _Oh hell no._

There was absolutely no way that Rex could repeat their summer innocence back when they were still youths. Because even just thinking back on it – even if it was something as simple as masturbation – made him uncomfortably hot and tensed and made his toes curl inside his boots.

He was glad the surrounding raucous drowned out the conversation he had with Matthew and that the other guys were keeping Noah's attention. For he sure as hell didn't know how to face Noah with that wayward suggestion hanging over his head like a demonic chant.

Feeling mightily uncomfortable, Rex wolfed the rest of his food and excused himself before the other guys were finished, desperately needing a cold bath to calm down his nerves. Noah cast a questioning look at him, telling Rex that Noah had noticed something amiss.

Rex forced a casual smile and mouthed 'bath', just to let Noah know that it was nothing big. Noah took his word and just nodded, before turning his attention back to the Delta guys.

Rex fought against making a mad dash for the showers, needing the full blast of the water to pound away the elicit suggestions that Matthew had planted in his brain.

Despite his hurry, before leaving the table, Rex remembered to thank Jackson for his coming to his defense.

The lieutenant gave a big smile and casually dismissed it as nothing. Then he folded his arms, face instantly becoming the serious mask he wore on missions.

"I just wanted to make sure our men don't harbor any ill feelings towards each other. Disgust, anger and discontent can badly affect one's judgment on the battlefield, especially when one needs to entrust his life to his comrades," Jackson explained with rationale, a picture perfect leader as to be expected from his rank.

"And since we might be in for another tough mission soon, I don't want any personal disputes to be brought into the battle zone."

Rex raised his brows, though he knows he shouldn't be surprised. As a lieutenant, Jackson would be in the loop before the regular troops. But there was something grim about the rare, furrowed lines between Jackson's brows and the way he squared his jaw when he said that, that gave Rex reason to be wary of the upcoming mission.

And as it turns out, the following dawn, an emergency briefing revealed that Providence Intel had finally tracked down the hideout where Cain had shipped those kidnapped EVOs to. The recon team had confirmed the location at a reclusive island somewhere in the pacific, but unfortunately, communication lines were distorted and their last report in was way past due. Yet spy planes sent to patrol the vicinity showed no ships in the immediate waters, suggesting that the group Cain worked with – most likely The Rise –hadn't yet discovered the recon team, for if they had, they would be scrambling to flee the island.

Since the situation was unclear, White Knight, Captain Calan and Six decided to send in a modest team to check in on the situation, not wanting to alarm the enemy least they make their escape.

Six, Rex, Bobo, Shadow and Delta and Bravo platoons were tasked for this mission.

Everyone moved with a sense of urgency as they gathered supplies and weapons. Once preparations were complete, the troop left, with Rex feeling hopeful that he'd rescue the EVOs like he'd promised those people back in Kiev.


	24. Crackdown

**Quick recap included at bottom for how it relates to the earlier part of my story.

* * *

 **Chapter 24: Crackdown**

(*Providence tracks down the kidnapped EVOs from Kiev)

* * *

At dawn, Providence platoons were dropped off along the shoreline on their destination island, since the jungle was too thick for the plane to cut through.

The troops moved in files, following compass bearings as they headed towards the center of the dense jungle, where the recon team had initially pinpointed was where the facility was.

The morning was cool and it felt like it would be a good hike, so Noah started out excited, blood pumped with adrenaline, eager for action. But he quickly mellowed as the jungle trek wore him down. It proved deceptively challenging for the team as they lumbered their way across the thick undergrowth. They had to hack through hedges and dangling vines, and climb over massive, gnarled roots in order to pass.

As noon crept slowly crept upon them, Noah felt that it was getting too hot and stuffy for his comfort. The wind was blocked by thick trunks and dense undergrowth overcrowding the area. And indeed the air was so still and warm, incubated within the dense jungle, that it was stifling. Yet it was incredibly humid at the same time – a gleam of sweat clung to Noah's skin even if trudging through the muddy soil and uneven undergrowth could hardly be counted as exercise. It felt like a sauna was flowing in and out his nose and lungs as he breathed.

"I'm gonna kill the guy who said 'taking a stroll through the woods' was a good way to unwind," Bobo muttered grumpily, followed by a plethora of other complaints.

"No," Rex gave a mock tone of disbelief, "Uncomfortable, Bobo? But I thought this was like your natural habitat."

"Shut up. I'm an evolved ape. I've far advanced and have moved on from this place," Bobo spat unhappily.

"Awww, poor monkey," Rex cooed, obviously enjoying poking fun at Bobo's misery, "But I think your genetic evolution stopped just one step behind us – should've dropped the fur, you know?"

"But he did lose the fur," Noah couldn't help but add to the playful argument, prompting Rex to laugh evilly.

"Keep talking, Chums, and tomorrow you'll find fur in places you didn't know you could have," Bobo fired back with threatening words in a deceptively calm tone – characteristic of the sarcastic EVO ape.

Like Noah, Bobo was also Rex's best friend. But they had a slightly different chemistry from Rex and Noah. Where Noah and Rex could sometimes confide in each other about more serious stuff, or talk about sappy things, Bobo wasn't one who would dabble in such –as Bobo puts it –marsh mellow talk.

Bobo was more of a guff-kind-of character, was always direct to a fault, and had a degree of the highest order in 'sarcasm'. It was obvious where Rex learnt his wise-cracks and smart mouth from, and they seemed to enjoy taunting each other to the maximum degree.

On top of being through many missions together, Rex and Bobo share several traits, like their bad jokes, their impatience, and their childish antics. They were both fun-loving creatures, even at the expense of others, and frequently got a kick out of pranking their fellow Providence officers and making them miserable.

Where they differed, was how Bobo was more of a 'I-do-what-I-feel-like' –kind-of guy. He would skip out on work more often than not, if he could, and wasn't as considerate of others. He cheated stuff out of the other officers in card games all the time and would prank them at any time of the day. Rex on the other hand, was a little more responsible – well, at least more so now that he's older – and was more considerate and conscious that he shouldn't go overboard with his antics. Rex have matured alot, and have more or less stopped his pranks, whereas Bobo have continued.

The comical banter between the three buddies punctuated the trek every now and then until they spotted a hint of metal. The team quickened, sensing that their destination draws near. Then in another five hundred yards, they found it at the foot of a fallow slope of a clearing, roughly a hundred yards down.

Cain's facility was a huge metal dome standing over two hundred feet, looking like it covered over two hectares. Despite its massive size, it had been hidden from view because of the thick undergrowth and the towering trees that shot over three hundred feet and boosted a large, interconnecting canopy.

Bobo nothing short of grunted even more unhappily when he saw it.

"Really, we travelled all the way here just to check out this egg shell?"

Six crooked a brow – which was the only indication to show his irritation.

"This egg shell, is where the kidnapped EVOs are kept. Our mission is to find them, evaluate the scale of the extraction and deploy the right tactics and manpower to bring them safely back."

Bobo planted one big ape hand on his hip, equally irritated to be talked down at like an idiot.

"Seriously, I'm talking about a short cut here – ever heard of beaming?"

When clueless looks met him, he continued.

"No? Well, it's like using anti-gravity force of some kind to lift off the entire perimeter. Then we could ship the damn thing back to Providence and get them cured."

When Six and everyone else continued with their blank stares, Bobo huffed.

"It's like how UFOs do it when they kidnap people."

Rex burst out laughing at that point and got a mean glare from Six that warned him to shut up. The other Providence combat officers either groaned quietly or sniggered about Bobo's lame suggestion under their breaths.

"Fine, reject my ideas, as always. Let's see the tech division actually come up with something more useful and practical."

Bobo gave up, throwing his arms up into the air.

"Yea, they will Bobo, when you stop plagiarizing from bad sci-fi flicks," Noah cheekily said, quickly coming up behind him with a gentle pat on his shoulders that still sported a short fuzz.

Bobo gave Noah an ugly glare.

"Nice try Noah, but you are not comforting me at all."

"What? Bobo no, I was serious!" Noah exclaimed in a soft tone and instinctively, swooped a gaze over to Rex, who caught his eye.

They smirked together, sharing the inside joke even without words. Not to say that they had zero faith in Bobo's intellect – Bobo could create the best animatronic robot the world had ever seen, as he did when he made a *robotic clone of himself. But strangely enough, that was as far as his genius went.

The Weapons and Technology Development team had roped Bobo in after they discovered he made a perfect robot copy of himself. Okay, well, so his programming could still use a bit more work – but it was good enough to lure the tech department to persuade White Knight to let Bobo have a trial with them. Besides, Bobo had always a knack for using weapons and tech, so had been the longtime favorite test user that they would go to, to test out new gadgets. So the tech team probably thought it was the logical choice to upgrade Bobo to their ranks.

Unfortunately, a combination of Bobo's over-zealous ideas and prankster personality caused so much trouble and damage that his trial went down faster than a sub shot by nukes. They kicked him out of the team and flat out rejected all his crazy ideas and schematics. According to Rex, it seemed that Bobo took the rejection quite badly, since his pranks on tech team turned up a notch more sadistic. Despite being worried for their friend, Rex quite gleefully informed Noah, that Bobo being Bobo, that meant he was actually having a great time sulking.

"Actually, theoretically speaking," Tio piped in, rubbing his chin and looking thoughtful, "The 'beaming' thing could work, if we take it to the far stretch. A photon-powered, magnetic instrument could force the body of certain mass to levitate upwards, if he carried a device of polarizing force enough to repel the earth's magnetic core."

"Uh, Tio? You know you're not supposed to encourage the evil EVO, right?" Rex quirked an amused brow at the good natured fellow.

Bobo on the other hand, look suitably pleased.

"Hey kid, you, me," Bobo pointed, "We should form our own club."

Tio broke into a bashful grin, looking honored by Bobo's invitation, prompting Noah to share another quiet laugh with Rex.

"Well, speaking of tech, should we send in some drones first? In case the facility has a security system," Cody suggested, skipping over their mild banter, showing his prudence.

"Good call, Cody," Captain Calan noted aloud.

The group quickly assumed serious demeanors whilst Captain Calan ordered the troops to send out the drones first for a preliminary sweep.

Noah observed the plate-sized disks whizzing through the area surrounding the dome. In-built with location sensors and an intelligent navigation program, they could automatically flit through the designated coordinates that was keyed into their program and could detect and avoid obstacles. After twenty minutes without any incidents, Captain Calan and Six took it as cue to approach and ordered a secondary sweep.

Platoon Bravo, Delta, Six, Shadow, Rex and Bobo closed in cautiously. Noah inched inwards step by step alongside his platoon mates, his gun held at ready, finger on the trigger. He has his right wrist over his left for support, elbows at a comfortable semi-stretched angle for a quick redraw, or a quick reach to shoot targets.

Noah half-expected turrets to start firing at them since Cain was such a weapons-obsessed maniac. But nothing happened, causing Noah to ponder over the folly of Cain's group for not installing any security measures.

 _Were they so confident that they wouldn't be discovered?_

The dome grew in size as they moved in, and as they neared, Noah noticed the tarnished, blackish metal extensively eaten by reddish-brown rust and the poor workmanship and arrangement of the metal sheets overlaying one another – all tell-tale signs of a make shift facility that was built in haste.

 _No wonder there's a lack of an intruder detection system,_ Noah thought to himself, realizing that Cain's group must be somewhat lacking in funding –either that, or they hadn't planned on staying long.

Even so, Cain had enough resources to utilize a special type of metal that blocked detection from Providence nanite reading devices. Which was one reason why this facility was not discovered earlier.

"Should be safe. Find an entry," Six instructed into the comm-links.

After several minutes, Providence found two narrow entrances, opposite from each other. Hence they split, Captain Calan entering with Bravo through one entrance whilst the rest entered the other. They moved in a single file as the inner passageways were slim, roughly ten feet wide, but with high metal ceilings reaching well over two stories. Metal sheets flanked the walls of the passageway in tiled fashion like the outer wall. The ground itself was not covered, proving just how little effort Cain spent to build this base.

Noah reasoned that the facility was built to be readily abandoned, hence the reason why it was not properly constructed.

They moved cautiously, with Shadow taking the lead for Delta, ahead of the rest by a few yards to survey that the coast was clear. Working in close proximity with the Lieutenant, Noah was able to better observe and appreciate Shadow's talent.

It was no exaggeration that Shadow was touted the 'stealthiest officer'. As the troop went through corridors that twisted and turned, Noah took the opportunity to study Shadow's movements, hoping to learn a thing or two. Shadow was swift, zipping from one wall to the other, crouching then creeping along the metal walls to peek round bends before signaling the all clear to proceed. All the while, Shadow's footstep did not even make a single sound, which was a feat considering the heavy, fire-retardant and durable combat boots that all of them wore.

By comparison, Noah and the rest of the lot sounded like clumsy elephants thumping through, even if they were making conscious effort to land their footballs more lightly. Six of course, was the only other one on par with Shadow, but then again, he was wearing what looked like generic, gentlemen's oxfords – a staple in Six's wardrobe along with his dark green suit.

They moved without incident for several minutes before Noah noticed that the corridors were slightly curved on the inward, suggesting that the route was an inward spiral. A thought suddenly came across Noah on the oddity of such an architecture –it was a waste of space if it were just mere corridors connecting to the inner grounds. For a while, he toyed with the idea of an endless labyrinth built like the one for King Minos of Crete in the Greek legend, but instead of the Minotaur, EVOs would suddenly appear to chase them around.

Then he shook those horrific fantasies away, chiding himself mentally for imagining such a challenging scenario. It was habitual for him to have his mind wandering to various classics and theatre plays he had studied over his three-year course in drama school. Though he was not a daydreamer, he has had his scripts so rigorously drilled into him, that most situations with even just the slightest resemblance would automatically remind him of it.

Still, it pays to keep an active imagination. Rex often shared his amazement at Noah's hack of getting out of tricky situations with his resourcefulness. Since Rex relies mostly on his nanites' brute power and force, he had trouble fathoming how an ordinary, powerless guy like Noah could get one up on whoever they were facing, or give him ideas on what to do when they were caught in a spot.

Noah of course, was glad to be useful to Rex. Between his dreams of Broadway versus hanging his life by the neck fighting bad guys, it was a no brainer which path Noah would choose.

 _Rex_ was his calling. Since day one when Noah signed up with White Knight to act as Rex's friend while keeping watch on him, Noah had inadvertedly signed the rest of his life to that reckless EVO hero – though he wouldn't realize it until he hit his late teens.

Even if it meant putting his life on the line, Noah didn't care. Rex meant the world to him, so if fighting to keep one's world safe was important, then Noah was committed to fighting side by side with Rex to keep that world safe. As his wingman, his sidekick –whatever one called it – Noah wanted to be Rex's support, to watch his back, to keep him safe in whatever way that he could.

Watching Rex's broad back now, right at Shadow's heels. Noah couldn't help but smile to himself, recognizing Rex's impatience and eagerness to be the front man.

As ranks go, Six was the big shot here, but he was levelheaded and astute in utilizing not just his skills, but the skills of his men, which was why he lets Rex move ahead in front of him.

Noah knew that Six inwardly trusted Rex to be able to handle the fight and do the job right, even if Six would still find excuses to correct Rex –which was really, just a force of habit to mask Six's inner worry for the Latino EVO.

The spiraling corridor continued on for several minutes with both teams reporting in on their status periodically. Then, Bobo suddenly complained again.

"This stinks."

Six ignored him, but Shadow stopped and threw his head back.

"Do you have a better plan? Agent Bobo?"

"No, I mean _something_ really stinks. Like rotten meat."

The team exchanged looks, some shrugging, some commenting that they haven't whiffed anything of that sort, aside from the lingering smell of moldy soil and cheap metal.

"I'm telling you, my superior sense of smell is picking up something stinky," Bobo warned, planting both fists at his hips.

"Really? You don't say – the only stinky thing I'm picking up here, is you – no offence, buddy," Matthew, the resident joker in Delta, teased, prompting a few members to laugh.

Noah laughed along with them, though not for the same reason. In any case, he had always found Bobo to be classic comedy, even when he didn't speak. Just seeing a bipedal primate walking around in yellow clothes with a small, red top hat, was stand-up comedy gold.

"Haha, very funny chum, just to be clear, you are not my buddy," Bobo spat in his usual sarcastic tone when he was ticked off.

"Aww, poor monkey, did mean old Mutt hurt your feelings?" Rex cooed in an exaggerated sweet voice that only babies would appreciate. "Oops! Sorry – did I say 'Mutt'? I should have said 'Matt' – really."

Rex flashed a cheeky smile at Matthew, which was the closest thing he could do as 'vengeance' on Bobo's behalf. It prompted Noah to smile – it was always endearing to see how Rex was fiercely loyal to the EVO chimp. Rex twistedly joked before, that he wouldn't stand for anyone taking a pot shot at Bobo, since it was a privilege that only he could have.

Matthew, being the good-natured and easy-going fellow, didn't take insult to Rex's joke and just laughed it off.

"Oh sorry, Rex, didn't mean to make fun of your pet," Matthew said in a joking tone, obviously not able to resist making one last wise-crack.

"Prepare yourself when we get back, Mutt," Bobo pointed a menacing finger at him, eyes flashing with an evil glare.

Noah shook his head and laughed under his breath – looks like Bobo's next prank victim has been set.

"Alright, knock it off boys – let's focus here," Six ordered, tone sharp.

The whole team snapped back to their serious composure, proving just how much respect and command Six has over them.

"Rex, you pick up anything?" Six went in asking.

He shook his head. "Not yet."

The minutes ticked away like déjà vu. The corridors looked all the same, turning round and round inwards with no sign that it would end. It almost looked as if the whole dome was a fake set up, empty of a laboratory, of experiment set ups or the captured EVOs.

Curiously, there was nothing in Intel's report that mentioned this. In normal protocol, recon teams would draw up a floor plan of areas they were sent to investigate, to help the Executive team better position themselves and plan their attack and escape routes. Before recon went into radio silence, they reported meager details highlighting a large enclosure of some sort, with EVOs caged inside it. Now though, Noah doubted if they'd even found the captured EVOs.

Then, Noah started picking up something, just as the other guys did.

The putrid smell assaulted them first, stench a vile concoction of festering flesh and rot that suggested horrible experiments that had taken place. Pressing forwards, the corridors became thick with nauseating odor, so powerful that it slowed the troop down like smog. His platoon mates lamented about the horrible smell, confirming that it was just as Bobo had said. Indeed his better primate sense of smell had caught whiff of it much earlier than the rest of them had.

Noah kept mum, forcing himself to not dwell on the gut-retching stench. Instead, he focused his thoughts on brainstorming for ideas on why the stench suddenly became so omnipresent.

Scrutinizing every corner of the passageway with his gaze, he noticed slim, three-panel air-vents running all along the upper edge where the side-walls joined the ceiling.

Hairs rising at the back of his neck, Noah had an uneasy feeling and an even more unsettling thought in his mind. Noah guessed the stink escaped from the air vents. He quickly shared his thoughts with the rest, suggesting that something could be going on above in an upper floor.

"Good observation, Noah," Six praised.

"Great, so should I make a shortcut through?" Rex pointed to the ceiling excitedly.

"Not if you want to alert the enemy," Shadow warned.

"That's right – remember Rex, we don't know what happened to the recon team," Six reminded, "and we don't know much about this place. So it's best that we keep it down a notch till we locate the kidnapped EVOs."

"Right, got it," Rex agreed.

The troop continued forward, till Rex suddenly pulled Shadow back to stop with him.

"What's up ahead?" Six asked.

"Not sure, but I picked up some faint noises and screaming," Rex informed, face grim.

Noah's platoon mates exchanged wary glances, and as they continued further, the sounds became more audible. Bloodcurdling screams and horrendous growls echoed down the walls, faintly, at first, then steadily rose in crescendo, sending a skin-chilling hum combing over the troop. Clashing sounds of bodies smashing against iron punctuated the chaotic orchestra. The sounds of heavy jaws and fists sinking into flesh, ripping muscles and breaking bones quickly became clear. Noah shivered, goose bumps rising along his skin.

"Sounds like a bunch of people being tortured. It's awful," Matthew commented in a tone full of dread.

Shadow tensed noticeably at Matthew's comment and threw the slightest turn of his head back.

"No. It's sounds more like a fight."

"A fight between what?" Matthew sounded edgy, reflecting the unsettling thought Noah was sure was shared by the whole troop.

"EVOs, duh," Rex threw over his shoulder, and was already running ahead, disappearing round the curve.

"Rex, hold on –" Six started, then sighed, opting instead to follow suit.

"Let's hurry men!"

Six led the pace, running after Rex down several more turns till the corridor opened to a scene that sent ripples of unsettling gasps breaking out amongst everyone.

Six EVOs were locked in a no-holds-barred fight, within a metal cage placed at the heart of the dome. Mutated limbs and lethal appendages were thrown at one another, with jaws snapping and ferocious roars erupting.

The central cavern was enormous, roughly a third-hectare in size and reaching almost a hundred feet in height. The center cage was made of thick metal wiring, criss-crossing like a lattice and crudely bent to form a dorm enclosure. Slim columns of metal pillars criss-crossed like cobwebs from floor to ceiling all around outside the battle cage. Bright spotlights encircled the crown of the structure, spilling light over the windowless dome. The bright fluorescent lighting reflected off the puddles of crimson blood, looking more like red lacquer that should be painted over mahogany tables.

Behind the center battle cage, were a dozen, small cages, lined up side by side along the dome wall, encircling the opposite half of the dome. Those prisons with thick bars held other EVOs that were testy and growling restlessly, having riled by the frenzied scene before them. Most banged against their prison door, eager to join the blood bath. Their fervent roars joined together in an intimidating crescendo, like a twisted choir long since spiraled into monstrous realm.

Shocked beyond words, the troop joined Rex in being rooted to the ground for several seconds, taking in the gladiator scene.

"Well, at least they are already in cages," Tio spoke up quietly, thin voice betraying his nonchalant words, so our job is half- "

The barred doors to the metal dome suddenly slid downward and disappeared into the earth, making a lumbering sound.

"-done," Tio finished, then took a sharp intake of breath, as did a couple others.

The EVOs within the cage suddenly stopped, frozen mid-action and glaring at the open space where the bars used to be. They seemed temporarily disorientated, confused even, cocking their heads this way and that.

"Uh Six," Rex started warily, impatient for orders to lock up the EVOs before they quickly figured they were free.

Right then, one of the EVOs broke out of its confused trance and bounded down towards them, monstrous arms raised in time to a bellow, akin to the cry of a battle roar. It incited the other EVOs to follow after its lead, sending goose bumps running along Noah's skin.

Rex moved to action immediately. He zipped at top speeds on his jet boosters, ramming into one of the EVOs with his gigantic, cylindrical arms. The EVO stumbled backwards slightly but held its ground, bracing Rex and pinching him by his torso. It swung Rex to the side, and Rex flailed a bit, spinning like a feather tossed about by the wind for a few seconds till he regained control of his aerial balance.

Six was not a second after Rex, magna blades drawn before Noah even noticed, bounding into the fray.

"Move in troops! Arrow formation, ready your collars for firing. Securing the EVOs are the top priority," Six ordered.

Shadow was right at Six's heel, but before Noah and the rest could follow, a metal door suddenly slid down before him, forcing Noah to jump back before it crushed his toes. Chorus of protests and shock were thrown by his team mates as they were unexpectedly cut off from the central dome chamber.

"Delta-" came Six's urgent tone via the comm-links, "What's going on there? I just saw your passage cut off."

Before Jackson could report, an EVO dropped down from the ceiling where a panel suddenly slid open.

" _A surprise visit_ ," Jackson replied in chagrin, and wasted no time firing his tranquilizers, so the EVO fell unconscious.

"Phew, well, this bastard won't be surprising us now," Bobo commented, but their relief was short lived.

Right after saying that, the ceiling opened up and multiple EVOs dropped down like demons falling through a portal from hell.

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Foot notes:**

*robotic clone of himself : Appears in the original animated series of season 2 and 3. Really, Bobo's a wacky genius! Lol, if only he could put his genius to better use!

 **Recap:**

In chapter six to eight, Rex went to Kiev to uncover an epidemic of people reverting to their EVO forms. Turned out it was caused by Cain injecting a Remote EVO Activation Serum into their bloodstream, and thereafter, controlled them with a nanites controlling device. Under orders of the Rise, Cain carried out the plan as an experiment, and also kidnapped many EVOs, shipping them to an unknown location, which Providence Intel had been investigating and trying to locate.


	25. Crackdown Chaos

**Chapter 25: Crackdown Chaos**

(It's a battle of wit and bravado within the confines of the maze… Noah and his team struggles!)

* * *

Monstrous roars mingled with cries of shock from Noah, Bobo and Delta platoon. The corridor seemed to shrink with the mad jostle of the mutated horde charging towards them. Without hesitation, Jackson ordered for force field shields to go up. Three of Noah's platoon mates were on it immediately, and just in time too, causing the horde to clash against the photon-powered wall not ten paces from them. Akin to Rex's force shields, the photon-wall emitted faint blue light, and was controlled by three units of generators that looked like flashlights, which were attached on the shoulder.

"Status report, Jackson – we hear a lot of noise going on your end," Six came over the radio again.

"EVO onslaught, Six. We're getting real tight here," he answered, radioing all parties.

"How tight?"

"Tight enough, but we will figure something out," Jackson replied calmly.

"We're a bit busy out here ourselves. Hang on as long as you can. We'll recon soon."

Bobo grunted at that and exchanged looks with Noah, giving his signature sour face.

"Easy for him to say, he's got our star weapon with him, even just him and Shadow are pro enough."

"Hey c'mon now, be thankful at least you've got me," Noah nudged the EVO monkey's shoulder with an elbow. Despite the dire situation they were in, Noah couldn't help but give a half smile, trying to be positive.

Bobo rolled his eyes and scoffed.

" _Oh puh-lease_ , two sidekicks don't make a hero."

Noah's smile was cut off the next moment when several of the EVOs shot multiple appendages that went through the shield without resistance.

"Fuck!" a few platoon mates cried but despite being in a pinch, Delta remained organized and in formation, making it easy for Noah to follow suit.

Since there were too many snaking limbs to dodge from within the cramped passageways, the front ranks – Noah included – sliced off the slithery limbs with their electric knives released from a hidden compartment at the base of their guns.

Unexpectedly, the chopped appendages regrew quickly, so fast that it was nearly overwhelming, striking some of the front ranks, causing them to fall under their feet.

"Hold steady, support ranks fire tranquilizer shots," came Jackson's order.

The guys behind did as told, firing over the shoulders of the front ranks. Unfortunately, the tranquilizers had no effect on the snaking limbs as the whipping onslaught kept coming.

Frenzy gripped Noah, sending his heart into wild gallop and his abdominal muscles clenching. Despite that, he kept his wits about him, mind racing for an alterative.

"Jackson, the sludge bomb!" Matthew and Cody cried in unison, reminding Noah of Providence's latest arsenal. Taking ideas from the *level five sludge EVO that Rex battled at the warehouse during the drug bust, the sludge bomb supposedly had some kind of 'stoning' and adhesive agent.

Jackson nodded.

"Matthew," he appointed the man to the task.

"Alright, stay back guys," Matthew warned before he loaded the weapon.

"Ready?" Matthew looked to Cody and two others who carried the photon shield devices. They would have to temporarily switch off the power since the sludge bomb can't pass through the photon-wall.

At their nods, Matthew fired at the same time that the photon-wall disappeared.

The moment the palm size containment shell struck the EVO horde, it exploded and released a dirty pink mesh of goo that quickly expanded and climbed over the EVOs like a monstrous dough.

The EVOs roared in fury and struggled in futile against the chemical, stuck like flies in honey. Very quickly, the goo hardened like cement, rendering the EVOs completely unmovable.

The troop's relief however, were short lived. The air cracked and whitish fire of a powerful electric current crackled over the messy pile of EVOs like an electric net.

Anguished squeals and roars were ripped from the EVOs, loud and deafening. Observing the scene carefully, Noah picked out the EVO that was electrocuting the rest as it released its power in a bid to break away from its prison. Its shoulders and long, oblong head stuck out from the side of the EVO pile and it had several loops joining the head and shoulders like electrical wirings.

The electric currents leapt like live, giant snakes, thrashing about more violently and jumping further off the EVO pile as seconds passed. Then faint crack lines started forming on the hardened sludge.

 _This isn't good,_ Noah thought to himself, realizing that the EVO was increasing its shock intensity, and quickly pointed it out to his team. If this keeps up, the sludge will break and the other EVOs will be free.

"I'm on it, with the collar!" Bobo announced.

He reached for the collar hooked up at his back and clipped it onto a grappler gun before firing off, shooting the pincher device at the Electric EVO. The collar closed around its neck and automatically snapped shut. The EVO gave an annoyed scream, but otherwise didn't seem affected. It continued discharging its powers till the collar sizzled, wisps of smoke rising from it.

"Shit, it fried the collar," Bobo deadpanned, giving a look of despair, "Any other ideas?"

Jackson frowned till both eyebrows met and fired a round of tranquilizers at the electric EVO. The EVO gave a screech of disapproval but luckily, the doses did their job, the EVO falling over limp, unconscious.

Calamity passed, many guys gave sighs of relief, though they remained tensed, alert and wary for new EVOs popping up from nowhere.

Noah calmed his breathing and surveyed their surroundings, including the giant hole in the ceiling several yards away, from where the EVOs dropped down from. Having a hunch, he studied the side walls and the ceiling directly overhead carefully.

He suddenly realized that the tiled arrangement of the metal sheets looked like they could slide over one another like sliding doors. He tried pushing a few panels sideways, but it wouldn't budge.

 _Maybe it opens from the other side?_

Which could mean any of the panels could slide open.

Having a bad feeling, Noah pressed his ears to the wall and felt his blood pressure spike on picking up some noises.

"Uh, guys, we needa get out of here, stat."

"What have you picked up?"

Noah quickly shared his hunch.

Tio's legs clearly shook.

"Maybe we should go back the way we came." Tio proposed nervously.

"No can do," Nathan shook his head, "It's too long a way back, and if what Noah says is true, they could ambush us at any point."

Cody nodded. "I agree, our best course of action will be to regroup with Six, Rex and Shadow at the central chambers."

Jackson rubbed his chin in contemplation as he listened.

"Alright, here's what we should do. Centipede formation, now. Get out the torches and cut through the door. Keep the shields up and keep watch of walls and ceilings," Jackson barked quick orders, to which Delta responded quickly.

Two officers knelt by the door that separated them from the central dome and started cutting through the thick metal with the cutting torch. They barely cut through a palm's length when Noah's prediction came to light –panels suddenly tore open right beside them and out poured more EVOs.

Due to the close proximity, the impact of the EVO horde bashing against the force field could be felt. The stuffy compressed air seemed to vibrate violently against Noah's skin with every body slam the EVOs made.

The other Delta guys kept their cool, but their faces were grim, knowing they were effectively caught like a mouse in a trap unless that wall was cut. They had no other means of attack since their ammunitions couldn't pass through the force field, and the EVOs were too close to risk dropping their shields.

Just when things don't seem to be able to get any worse, one of the EVOs gave a punch that sent visible static ripples across the force field shield.

"God damn it! Just what we need – a type that disrupts photon power! It's gonna bring down our shields!" Tio complained anxiously.

"Hey, let's keep our heads guys, and listen to me," Jackson calmed them, voice loud and firm, "Keep cutting the door – no matter what, do not stop."

"Roger that."

"Next, how many external power batteries do we have to load up the field generators?"

"Just another six."

"Great," Bobo lamented dryly, "Looking at how the shield's doing now, that's not going to be enough."

Noah nibbled his lips nervously, eyeing the precarious faint blue light of the shield flickering slightly along the edges. Every pound the electric type EVO gave, it sucked up some of the force field power, steadily eating away their protection. And at the rate it took to cut the wall, the shield batteries will be eaten up before an exit will open up.

"Hey, why not we just give it all at one shot?" Tio suddenly suggested, "We can hook up all the power cells and let it overcharge that son of a bitch instead."

"What the – are you crazy? You're putting all your eggs in one basket!"

"Yeah, and if that doesn't work, we would have wasted our shields."

Two of their comrades vocally disagreed.

"Maybe, but likely the sudden influx of energy will force the EVO to expel the excess charges. Hopefully, it will blast the other EVOs crowding behind it."

"Yea, or super charge a mega electric bomb which could fry us to our deaths," someone added in chagrin.

Noah, recognizing that Tio's theory had merit, held an arm out to defend him.

"Actually, Tio could be right. I know it sounds far out, but I've seen it happen with Rex more than enough times. When he suddenly gets super charged, he needs to release the power quickly or even he might be fried."

Tio shot Noah a look of thanks for supporting him.

"That's right. And essentially, we need only sacrifice one of the field generators – two at most – just overload two first, and let those fry out. We'll still have one remaining."

The other Delta guys exchanged looks with one another and slowly nodded, accepting his reasoning.

"Say you're right, do you know how to alter its wirings for the plan?" Jackson questioned, crooking a brow, at which many of their Delta mates paled and for good reason. Though every combat officer had fundamental training in tech modification, it really wasn't anyone's forte.

Tio on the other hand, gave a very confident nod.

"Are you absolutely sure?"

The usually nervous Tio looked like a picture perfect ace and repeated his answer.

"Yes, Sir."

Jackson nodded, satisfied with that.

"Then go right ahead. We're counting on you."

Tio worked quickly with deft and nimble fingers to modify two of the generators and hook several units of spare batteries to it. He proved his skill when the bluish light of the force field intensified in colour and brightness, signaling that it has strengthened.

The EVO squealed seconds after, its fists stuck on the photon surface in a deadlock, becoming part of the circuit. Coarse spider web veins of luminous whitish-blue ran in disarray, radiating from the EVO's contact point.

Noah and the others held their breaths, worried and anxious, praying that it would go as planned.

"Get ready guys, shut off the other device at my call," Tio reminded while he placed two conjoined generators on the ground, fingers hovering above a modified switch, getting ready himself.

Right as the whitish-blue electric trail travelled up the EVO's arm, Tio shouted.

"Now!"

Tio flicked the switch, then abandoned it quickly. The rest of the team followed suit, splitting into two groups retreating a way off up and down the corridor whilst the device whirred and sizzled with sparks and whitish-blue electric currents that jumped about the center core like tiny live snakes.

The EVO screamed high-pitched, blood curdling screams as it stumbled forward, but it barely made five steps before a curtain of blinding, white fire suddenly exploded where it stood, engulfing it.

A charred smell permeated the air before the white flames died to reveal the badly burnt EVO. Several other EVOs were also caught in the flames since they charged out, so they too were burnt and unconscious. Noah felt his heart well up with pity at the sight. Beneath that mutated appearance and primate behavior, was a human after all, lost to the effects of the mutated nanites. His only condolence was that Providence medical and science team would take over and help them to recover.

His thoughts were cut short when more panels opened, one right after the other, and more EVOs spilled into the corridor.

"Fuck? How the hell did Cain get so many EVOs?"

"Hang on guys! We're nearly done with the cutting. Just a few more minutes," their platoon mate informed anxiously.

There was no time for the split team to close the gap and share the remaining force-shield.

Since cutting the way to their life line was a priority, Cody threw over the last remaining force-shield generator to the group that was closer to the thick metal door. Their platoon mates caught the device and nodded solemnly, reactivating the force field shield for protection.

Noah and the rest had to fend for themselves, at least till that thick metal door was cut.

It was frightening to get up close to these mutated figures, much less fight them. Worst, in a crammed space where a confusing mess of bodies jostled against each other, one could very well accidently shoot a comrade when aiming for an EVO. As if they could read each other's minds, the unit quickly spaced out, so there was more room for engagement.

Noah's heart hammered like a mad mouse on the run, though he maintained his position along with his brave platoon mates. This was what it meant to be a combat officer – right in front and center of the action – firing their weapons and inhibitor collars at close range whilst dodging simultaneously.

"Matt!" Cody suddenly screamed.

Noah and Matthew snapped their heads just in time to see an EVO dragging Cody into an open panel. Matthew was on to the rescue instantly, intercepting before they passed through to the other side. Matthew fired tranquilizers and attempted to restraint the EVO with the inhibitor collar. However, the EVO smacked away the collar before the device reached its neck.

Cody gave a strangled cry, face buried under its grotesque, bulking arms.

Noah joined in the aid. Since the tranquilizers didn't seem to work, he stabbed its shoulders instead with his electric dagger in an attempt to make it loosen its hold on Cody. Noah's blade tore through the blackened parts of the EVO's horribly scabbed skin and made a huge tear, but there was no blood. Then, Noah realized he'd only torn through a black coloured tattered cloth stuck on the EVO's shoulders and back.

It was then that something eerily unmistakable caught his eye – something silver and shiny, nearly missed because scabs of skin grew over half of it, embedding half of the badge into its flesh. An emblem peeked out, signifying an officer of the recon team.

The EVO, was actually _Providence's_ own guy.

A sense of horror struck Noah at the revelation.

 _It can't be… so all the Recon guys… were caught and turned EVO?_

His blood grew cold.

"Shit! Tio!"

Noah jolted and threw a frightened gaze back.

Two platoon mates screamed and lunged after his friend, whom Noah saw just disappear into one of the open panels. Noah bit his lips hard in frustration, not able to go over to help.

"Calan to Jackson, how are you guys holding up? I can hear lots of commotion," Calan radioed in.

"It's a trap here, Captain. They're picking us off one by one through doors opening everywhere. I've counted over two dozen EVOs – and still counting. They're coming at us non-stop and we are losing guys in this maze of horrors. You have to be careful at your end."

"Roger that."

"Noah? Bobo? What's going on? You guys alright?" came Rex's frantic voice from their comm links.

"Don't fret, Rex, just focus on your end. We're handling it here," Jackson answered before Noah could.

Right on cue, a resounding bang reverberated through the corridor, door finally cut, and it felt like the earth trembled, as the cut giant slab of metal slammed onto the ground.

"Delta! A route is opened. Get into the central chamber, all of you!" Jackson urged, "I don't want to see anyone left behind."

As if renewed with energy at the thought of being able to leave this maze of horrors, the whole team managed to free themselves from the EVOs, rushing into the central area of the Dome where they first stumbled onto the caged EVOs.

"Noah!" Rex sort of abandoned his fight with a sluggish EVO, zipping towards him on his Slyder, brows pinched together with worry.

Quickly scanning the arena, Noah marvelled at the evidences of their victory. No wonder Rex so readily left that EVO for Shadow and Six to finish up. Basically, it was the last EVO standing. All others – nearly two dozen – were down, lying limp on the grounds, defeated.

The fact that this three-man team could defeat half of what needed the entire eighteen-strong Delta platoon to handle, proved just how formidable they were.

Rex clutched Noah's arm for the briefest of seconds, giving him a once over as if checking his injuries, before he moved past to handle the EVOs charging in from the corridor.

With swift, decisive flicks of his electric whips, and punches from his smack-hands or fun-chucks, Rex easily subdued them. The battle settled down so quickly, it seemed almost unreal that the Delta troop faced so much challenge against those EVOs earlier.

Still, considering Rex's prowess, it should come as no surprise.

"Rex, thanks for finishing up for us," Jackson nodded at him.

"I should have come earlier. Sorry it took us so long to finish ours," Rex rubbed the back of his neck, looking guilty like he was at fault, "Hope your guys aren't injured too badly."

Jackson gave a short, boisterous laugh.

"We can handle this much. Otherwise, we've got no business being combat officers."

Six joined them, having dealt with the last EVO.

"You guys did a good job holding your side of the battle. It must have been tough."

"It is. Because I don't get a pay raise despite getting almost killed every other week," Bobo commented curtly.

Matthew dared a whistle.

"Yea, wouldn't that be a dream, huh?"

Noah's platoon mates laughed, suddenly relaxed, pressure lifted off their shoulders.

"I'll tell you what's a dream, if you think this mission is over, then you're sorely dreaming," Six replied bluntly, refusing to cave into their joke.

Jackson planted his hands on his hips and nodded firmly then they briefly re-evaluated the situation to decide their next move.

Given that the corridors and ceilings were lined with multiple panels that could open up at any time, the EVOs could move about freely and avoid bumping into the troops. It was clear they set an ambush, waiting for the troops to enter the central chambers before making an appearance, and what's more, even separated them from Rex.

They couldn't confirm how or if the EVOs had some form of communication and were working together, since all of them didn't appear to have retained their human conscious.

But what was clear, was there was someone behind all this. Their best bet, was to search above the ground corridors, sure that there were upper floors concealed.

To be continued…

* * *

Footnotes/ Recap:

*level five sludge EVO: Recap my drug bust written in chpt 12 and 13: Busted


	26. Crackdown Revelations

**Chapter 26: Crackdown Revelations**

(Providence stumbles on old friends, old foes and a troubling prospect)

* * *

Rex led the way to the upper floor, using his metal hands to peel away a ceiling panel of the corridor. Then he helped the rest up since it was too high for them to climb through.

They entered another tight, dimly lit corridor with crammed, metal cages lined up all along both sides of the wall. The smell hit them hard here, proving Noah's initial theory as correct. The stench was a mix of rotting flesh and foul combinations that couldn't be fathomed. Nonetheless, the troop didn't let that slow them down. They wasted no time, swiftly moving down the row and shooting the EVOs with tranquilizers. Noah was horrified as he took in the sheer number of caged EVOs that ran continuously.

 _So the upper dome is the holding area._

It was discovered Cain had previously abducted close to fifty people from Kiev. Doing a quick recap of the EVOs below and taking in the numbers here, Noah wondered dryly if there were other abductees from elsewhere around the world.

As like below, the corridor winded and they passed a dozen or so cages before the metal bars receded, freeing the EVOs.

"Up ahead, fire at will!" Six ordered.

The EVOs from further down were not yet darted, so they charged towards the troop in full intensity.

"Out of the way!" Rex yelled.

He brought out his battering ram and ran into the horde, bulldozing them, going several meters. However, the ceiling behind him opened up, and from it fell more EVOs which the troops tackled.

"Christ! This is like an EVO hive!" a team mate spat in frustration.

Wariness and exhaustion were evident on their faces, having to plough through EVO after EVO continuously.

Suddenly, explosive sounds reverberated and the ground thrummed faintly.

"Calan, tell me that was you and Bravo" Six checked over the comm links.

"Yes – bzzt – We have the minute bombs with us – bzzt - cuting across – bzzt – eight corridors," came Calan's chortled reply. Screams and growls could be heard from the background, suggesting they were facing the same chaos as Delta did earlier.

"Shit! – bzzt – Bravo – bzzt - dragged upstairs – bzzt."

"I can hear them. I'm on it. Guys, I leave things here to you."

"Hold on, I'm coming with you," Six said.

"So am I."

Six and Noah both bounded and jumped atop the back hood of Rex's vehicle before he zipped off.

Rex raced expertly through the winding corridors like a Nascar driver, while beaming electrified shots at EVOs who got in their way.

They finally came upon a few Bravo guys who were struggling against the EVOs. The trio tackled them, freeing the Bravo guys. Andrew was one of them, and he gave a nod to them in thanks.

Rex headed to the open panel in the ground, about to jump in to aid Calan and the rest of Bravo at ground floor, but Six clasped his shoulder, stopping him.

"Rex, we're wasting time. We should keep going inwards to central control."

"What? But they're struggling below!"

"Rex! This will never end – It's obvious someone's controlling their nanites and playing with us. We need to find the one in charge and put him down so we can stop this."

"I agree," Noah nodded, "Besides, you have to trust them. They're capable guys."

Rex stared between the two of them and squared his jaw.

"Alright."

"Sorry troops," Six radioed immediately after, "It's alot to ask, but hang in there while we get to the mastermind to stop all this."

"Roger." A firm chorus returned.

"You know, I think we should take a short cut just like Calan," Noah suggested.

"I absolutely agree." Rex morphed an arm into a giant mechanical sword with glowing razor sharp teeth spinning on the outer edge.

He cut through the walls cleanly like a samurai chopping bamboo, the metal walls no match for his fortified blade.

The inner corridors were empty, so Rex could work quickly without disruption.

Three, four, five corridors then the next wall opened up into a small chamber packed to the brim with tall glass containers housing grotesque looking creatures in stasis. It was like a sci-fi horror film of Frankenstein meets aliens. Noah felt his skin crawl and his hairs stand on ends when they slowly edged inward, weaving through the stasis cells.

The greenish liquid that filled the containers cast eerie glows, reflecting off the spotlights arranged in a crown along the top brim as if the specimens inside were some kind of sick prize.

There were EVOs of various mutation types. Many obviously looked like they had limbs hacked off, others were just bits and pieces of internal organs, and some had chunks of their body carved out. Most had odd pieces of metal instruments skewered through them. It was like mad experiments had taken place in macabre fashion.

"Whoever did this is one sick bastard," Rex criticized in a low growl.

Noah couldn't agree more.

Not able stomach the sight for much longer, he hurriedly shuffled through towards another doorway at the opposite end.

A glint flashing from above alerted Noah and he jumped back on instinct before a mechanic axe could slice his toes.

"Noah!" Rex and Six cried in unison and raced to his side, but they were intercepted by other EVOs before they could get to him.

The EVO he faced had a bed of torture contraptions embedded into its flesh, looking more a satanical, mechanical robot. His bullets were useless, racketing off the EVO's metal bits harmlessly. So all he could do was bounce off between the glass containers to avoid its attacks.

"Noah! Watch out three o'clock!" Rex warned, aiming a morphed weapon in his direction.

Noah ducked in time to avoid Rex's electric blaster, which gave the EVO a nasty shock. It bellowed and spasmed violently, ripping its metal parts off its body in an agonized fashion. Blood spluttered everywhere, staining the glass surfaces as its skin was torn off along with it. Noah nearly retched from the sight.

The EVO, now a bloody mess, seemed to glare at Noah, eerie gears rotating round liquid black eyes of animosity, making clicking sounds. Noah should reach for the inhibitor collar, or his tranquilizer, since the EVO was left with an organic form. However, he was frozen in place, heartbeat jumping in rhythm to the strange clicking sound crawling into his ear. Something thrummed in his veins, making him sway on his feet.

Suddenly the glass containers blurred into a dancing kaleidoscope of muted garnish colors in front of his eyes.

"Noah! Get a hold of yourself!"

The sound of glass shattering pierced his head.

Snapping to reality, Noah found himself within the EVO's clutches, hanging five feet from the ground with a deadly sharp spear aimed at his neck like a sacrificial lamb. He wasted no time and plunged his knife into the EVO's arm, snapping and twisting it violently. The EVO roared but didn't release him. Instead, it tightened its hold around his torso in a crushing grip.

Noah gave a strangled cry, sure he was going to burst his spleen, until Rex flew in from between two glass containers and threw a giant fist into the EVO's face. The EVO dropped Noah as it fell on its back. Six bounded in to help, and together, they put down the EVO.

"Noah, you spaced out earlier, what happened?" Six pressed, and Noah could feel his sharp gaze from under his glasses.

He shook his head.

"I don't really know. I'll explain it later. We have to keep going."

They reached what looked like a make- shift laboratory after picking off a few other EVOs along the way. Tables and apparatus were in disarray, with piles of books scattered all over floor. Multiple bulky television sets that looked like they were salvaged from the 90s, were stacked into two columns at the side, showing video feeds of the other troops below, proving that the troops had been watched right from the start.

And the guy playing them like a mouse in a trap was a dirty, shaggy guy hunched in a dirty coat over at the far end of the room. He was frantically picking up stacks of paper on a messy desk, mumbling to himself. Beside him, was another stasis cell, but instead of an EVO, it looked like a young man was floating within the translucent green fluid.

"No! Friend!" Rex shouted in distress and made a beeline for the stasis cell. He pressed against the glass container, studying the young man in concern.

Noah followed close behind and took three seconds to realize that Rex was saying 'Friend' as a name and remembered when Rex told him about his exploits with *NoFace and Hunter Cain.

He looked slightly older than his age, dark hair fanning a pointed face, body and limbs long and gangly, curling abit inside the stasis cell.

"Damn it, Friend! I'll get you out!" Rex said through clenched teeth and raised fists that quickly transformed into large, metal ones.

"No wait, Rex! It's dangerous!" Noah stopped him. Noface was alive, evident from the tubing that entered his nose and mouth that should be feeding him oxygen and food. Besides that, several wirings were hooked up onto Noface's forehead and other points of his body, making it tricky.

"We don't know his current condition or how his life support works, so we should probably wait for the Science division to advise us."

Rex took a sharp intake of breath and released his nanite constructs, but his fists remained clenched, shaking by his sides, showing how furious he was.

"Bastard! What did you do to him?" Rex spun round and snarled at the scruffy man, wringing him by the collar of his tattered shirt.

The man only gave a small laugh.

"Wait," Rex furrowed his brows in recognition, "You're *Brandon Moses."

Surprised, Noah peered at the man's haggard appearance and searched for similarities. He had never met him in person, but have seen his profile in the news. He looked nearly unrecognizable; face shrunken and famished looking, dark blond hair long and unkempt, a far cry from the once proud and well-kept scientist.

"Damn you bastard! What the hell are you doing caging so many EVOs? What are you planning? You better spill asshole!"

"Rex, keep calm," Six chided and took over from him, handcuffing the guy who oddly, made no resistance.

"Where's the *nanite controller?" Six questioned, reaching around his clothes and hair at the same time to search for the device.

Brandon kept laughing, harder now, slumped shoulders shaking hard.

"Quit your laughing!" Rex exploded, veins popping.

Six grabbed Brandon's adam apple in a pincher grip, causing him to choke and cough, spluttering.

"Stop your games. I want you to relinquish control over the EVOs. And spill, why did you amass EVOs in this facility?"

Brandon grinned hysterically.

"Oh I can't help you with that, since it's not really in my control, even if I have control over them," he snorted then gave a manic laugh.

"Stop talking in riddles," Six jabbed the sensitive part under the chin.

Brandon gave a raucous cough that quickly turned into a hysterical laugh.

"Amazing, isn't it, what nanites can do to different people," he went on in between chortles and wheezes, "They bond in similar intercellular ways but they react so differently, giving different powers. Like this one for example, I heard from Hunter that he can control his nanites, just like Rex. Of course, Rex is _ultimate_ perfection, but since it's impossible to experiment on Rex, we had to settle for him.

"You sick bastard! So that's why you've captured and turned so many people into EVOs? Asshole! Do you know how many lives you have destroyed? How many families you have ruined?" Rex hollered, lunging for Brandon, taking every ounce of Noah's strength to hold him back.

"Rex! Stand down!" Six snapped crossly.

They jostled mildly, stopping Rex. Noah dragged Rex a few paces away, trying to calm him down. Rex simmered, but remained huffing and puffing, livid.

Brandon continued cackling without a care then suddenly stopped.

"You know, the key is harnessing their internal coding…" he carried a fascinated look, staring into space like a child in wonder.

Noah scrutinized him, undecided if that was an act, or if he'd really become mentally unstable.

"So, in short, you want to make another Rex?" Six pressed.

Brandon exploded into a mad fit of shrieks and laughter.

"Oh ho, no, no, not me, but you see, I'm just another dog in this arms race. My _superiors_ want to make a stronger Rex. A different one, one that he cannot influence with his *Omega-1."

"So who are your superiors? Speak."

"The Rise," Brandon whispered with a deranged look in his eye.

Suddenly, the room blacked out. Noah felt a distinct spine tingling sensation at his back but couldn't see detect anyone when he spun round. The next thing he knew, Six was knocked over and Rex was flung back, crashing into the far wall while Brandon screamed in a high pitched squeal like a pig to slaughter.

"Someone's got him! Quick Noah, after him!"

Noah was on the move instantly, chasing after Brandon's scream that quickly travelled away from them. He fumbled abit in the dark, exiting the room and turning down a dimly lit corridor, with Six close at his heels.

Then the screams abruptly stopped just before they made another turn. They stared at the dead end, breathing deeply.

"He's gone," Six stated the obvious, tone tinged with frustration.

"How the hell did he disappeared?" Noah was incredulous. Whoever grabbed Brandon couldn't have escaped through any side panels so quickly.

Six merely pushed up his glasses slightly and said one word.

"Breach."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Rex, he'll be alright," Holiday assured as she stopped by Rex, one arm hugging her clipboard, and the other, his arm.

"Yea Rex, you should get some rest yourself," Noah urged from beside him, "You've been here for thirty-six hours straight."

Rex gave a deep sigh, hunching lower in his seat next to NoFace's bed in the medical bay, pressing his palms together over his nose.

"Yea, I'll just need a while more."

Holiday and Noah exchanged worried looks, but didn't insist any further. Holiday went off, but stopped by the door.

"Uh Noah, I know you already had your mission debrief, but the Science Team is going over some case notes later. Are you interested to join?"

"Sure, I'll be there."

She nodded whereas Noah remained with Rex.

Silence filled the room after she left, punctuated by consistent beeping from the life support system. Though the doctors found no life threatening injuries, it was clear NoFace's consciousness hung precariously in the balance. Noah couldn't imagine the kind of trauma NoFace might have gone through, or what exactly did Brandon do his brain, that kept him unconscious.

It had been nerve wrecking to fly back NoFace in his stasis cell. And even after Holiday and her team carefully drained the container and transferred him to the medical bed, Noah could tell that Rex's anxiety did not lessen.

It would appear Rex had actually formed a closer friendship bond than anyone realized, since the Kiev mission. It explained his ferocity, and why he lost his temper upon discovering NoFace in stasis. Rex was fiercely loyal to his friends. He blamed himself for neglecting *Nikolay, since basically, Providence Intel didn't even know that NoFace was kidnapped again after they parted at Kiev.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Perched on one of the stools in the Science lab, Noah listened as Holiday went over some details with Six. Six recapped, with Noah adding additional points here and there.

By the looks of how the recon team were turned into EVOs, it was clear the intel delivered to HQ was a bait to lure them in. It explained for the sore lack of info. They debated the Rise must have wanted to test their created EVOs against Rex.

Finding Brandon Moses also answered many questions of how Hunter came by the *REAS. With such a high-profile, genius scientist in their fold, Holiday worried how many other specialists the Rise had secretly coveted into their ranks.

The dome structure itself, for instance, involved high tech engineering that must have required only the very best in the field. Holiday deducted that the metal pieces could be magnetized sheets controlled by a minute electromagnetic charges sent from a main control, which was how it could slide around. She couldn't confirm this yet, and have to wait for the Weapons and Tech division to report. A team was currently on route to the dome grounds for further research while another was studying the control system brought back, which Noah had earlier spied embedded on the wall behind NoFace's stasis cell.

To top it off, Breach was the first suspect for the abrupt interception and sudden disappearance of Brandon while masking herself skillfully. They didn't actually see her, but Six was convinced she must have teleported herself and Brandon away.

It was a troubling prospect to contemplate. Because if it was true, then it would mean that the Rise was *Van Kleiss and the pack.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

* * *

 **Footnotes & Recap:**

 ***Brandon Moses:** From the original series. A genius scientist who tricked many EVOs, amplifying their mutations instead of curing them, all for his shady dealings on the black market. In this story, he was captured by the Rise; already as seen in chapter 2, and was forced to work for them.

 ***Omega-1:** The Master Control Nanite that is the key to all of Rex's nanites abilities.

 ***Van Kleiss and the pack :** Yea, so I added them back in… maybe? Hope this doesn't bore anyone. For spoilers, certain characters have changed to a one-eighty, so stay tuned for that.

 ***NoFace :** The EVO helped Rex in his mission in Kiev in chapter 6 to 8. I know everyone remembers him hating on Rex and being his enemy in the original series. In this story, Rex's Worldwide cure set off easing the hatred in NoFace's heart.

*Nikolay: I gave NoFace that name as when he was human.

 ***nanite controller :** Six assumes Brendon must be using the same device as Cain did to control the EVOs at Kiev (in chapter 6 to 8)


	27. Hazy Situations

**Chapter 27: Hazy Situations**

(Some questions are answered, while more remained. Noah does his best juggling after the Dome mission)

::::::::::::

Noah passed the rest of week dividing his time between combat practice, Holiday and Rex.

Though he was no longer a trainee, combat officers received regular training sessions to keep them fit and to continually improve their skills.

During rest times, he liked to drop by the science lab so he could be updated on the Scientists' findings over the nanite war. Any knowledge gleamed that could be useful was worth learning and besides, Holiday and her team was more than happy to share their studies.

And of course, whenever he could, he accompanied Rex, particularly during curing sessions. Over two hundred EVOs brought back from the dome needed to be cured. In order not to tire Rex out, Holiday limited it to only half a dozen at a time, spread every several hours.

Noah knew Rex probably could have handled more, but given the dip in his nanite count, she was cautious and decided to take it slow.

Noah felt helpless, not able to bring back to life the gloomy Rex who zombied around, looking more and more depressed since not every EVO could be cured and several quickly reverted back like the way the EVO cows did.

All Noah could do, was lend Rex his listening ears, privy to the miserable, heavy thoughts Rex kept hidden within his chest.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Noah flickered his gaze between two giant screens, one with Caesar on video-comm and the other with magnified video records of nanite reactions.

Both the Providence Science Department and Caesar's group already concluded the various nanite-aggravating abnormalities were caused by the same group – The Rise. Though whether or not Van Kleiss and previous minions were involved, still remained to be confirmed.

In any case, it was clear from the findings that the EVOs from the Dome had nanites that again slightly differed from the ones aggravated by the ones before.

The EVO cows, nanite patches, the EVOs from Kiev and the Dome – the screen split into four time-lapse videos showing the nanites' transgression. Tubular nodes rearranged itself over a center sphere, lighting up in varying rhythm. It was almost dizzying for Noah to watch, and he began to understand why Rex always complained it was mental fry.

White Knight was on another screen, face grim like the reaper, hands clasped tight together on his oak desk, listening to the scientists' debate, punctuating with questions here and there.

They compared the nanites, talking about the accelerated decryption of the reactivation key, the powered-up aggression and placed them into timeline. The results were pretty mixed. The EVO cows remained in their mutated forms. The three guys from the illegal patch ring and those from Kiev did not revert to their EVO forms. However, the ones from the Dome were fifty-fifty.

Caesar rubbed his chin.

"Actually, we should move up the REAS. I think that should have been developed before the EVO-cow serum."

"How could you tell?" Holiday lifted a questioning brow.

"From their age," Caesar simply replied.

*Dr. Rhodes clapped a fist on an open palm.

"Of course!" she exclaimed before anyone else could speak, "By passing specific spectrums of highly energized photons through the nanites, you would be able to deduce the level of surface exposure of the newly arranged nodes of the reprogrammed nanites, and draw an estimate relative to the oldest exposed surface. The difference in the surface exposure levels should give you an approximate value that equates to the amount of time the nanites have existed in their reprogrammed forms –in other words, their age."

Caesar gave a wide smile, looking utterly pleased that someone figured it out without him having to explain anything.

White Knight cleared his throat and massaged his brows.

"Well, if what you say is true – about the REAS created first – then why do the EVO cows revert, while the some of the REAS don't? Shouldn't the REAS be an improved version?"

"Not necessarily. I would say, the Rise is experimenting different formulas for a winning combination," Caesar answered.

"What for?" Rhodes asked.

"To defeat me," Rex replied in dead fashion, suddenly appearing at the door. "That's what Brandon said. But anyway, it's not like that's anything new from what Holiday and Caesar deduced from the start."

His grime tone betrayed his bland expression, telling Noah that Rex was wrought in emotions behind his brave front. Rex was always the type to wear his heart on his sleeve, except whenever he was downplaying worrisome thoughts. Noah could almost be counted as the only one Rex would dare to be open about his fears and self-doubt, asides from Holiday, who served as the most constant counselor in Rex's life, and the occasional Six. Bobo was another life-saver during Rex's tumultuous periods, but he could offer few comfort – if any – as his words of wisdom bordered on sarcasm and 'reverse psychology' more often than not.

Nowadays however, Rex could hardly keep his gloominess in, being such a dark cloud recently that one would feel the air was stuffy and oppressing just being in the same room as him. Most of the room flinched slightly, not expecting Rex to join their discussion, much less confirm the depressing conclusion on his own. The last thing anyone wanted was to put him in more depressing mood.

"Ah, Mijo, good that you have finally decided to join us," Caesar went on without a beat, as if he didn't notice Rex's soulless demeanor. "Intel sent me some tapes to review regarding the Dome mission. I've been told the REAS controller couldn't be found, so I want to get your opinion on what you found of the EVOs behavior."

"You think they are controlled by another method?" White Knight asked.

Caesar nodded.

White Knight sighed audibly, and it was never a good sign when he did.

"Then when can we have definitive answers?" He swept a criticizing gaze across his Science Division.

"We can't have sloppy results from anyone in our payroll," his tone was impatient. "Most importantly, what I want to know is, with these nanite modifications, does this mean within a year or two, we'll be outnumbered with nanites that Rex can't cure?"

"That won't happen," Caesar replied before anyone else could, tone slightly cutting despite his smiling face, "Since I will be giving every aid that I can."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Alright Delta, move out!"

"Yes Sir!" Delta platoon cried aloud and quickly filed into the vehicle garage.

There was another case of an illegally modified domestic bot – akin to what *Ray did – rampaging in the supermarket, and a group of six were assigned to tackle it, including Noah. But right before Noah got into the backseat of their rover, Rex grabbed his arm, legs shifting into bike form.

"Hop on," Rex nudged towards his back seat, surprising him.

"What are you doing here? You're supposed to be resting. You just finished a curing session, didn't you?"

"Well, you see, Bobo kicked me out of our room, telling me to 'get a life.'"

"And?"

"So I went to Six. Asked him what the meaning of 'life' was."

"Right."

"He told me life was about 'getting action.' So that's why I'm here."

"I see."

Jackson gave a hearty laugh while the other Delta guys grinned.

"Well then, we'll be happy for you to join us!"

Noah didn't try to stop him. At least he was doing something other than moping around.

Needless to say, Rex pretty much dealt with the weaponized robot on his own, whamming it with such vigor and speed that the Delta guys pretty much didn't have to do anything.

In fact, they almost seemed to purposely stand back in a lax fashion and Noah caught them shooting off numbers while Rex fought.

"Five, no, eight."

"Seven."

"Twenty."

"Twelve."

"What's this all about?" Noah asked.

Jackson laughed heartily.

"They're betting on how many aisle Rex is going to plough through."

"What!" Noah gave an incredulous yell.

"C'mon," Matthew clapped his back, "Have some humor. Besides, look at him, you know he needs to blow some steam, and it's not like we won't split the change with him."

Suddenly Noah understood. May seem like they were having fun at Rex's expanse, but the team were standing down so Rex could have the chance to vent his frustrations, which was a good thing in this case for he'll exercise his nanites and get them back to healthy levels.

"No, I'm outrageous!" Noah then replied, smile twitching at the corner of his lips, "Because you guys should have included me. I'm betting eighteen."

Matthew laughed hard.

"Now, that's a good sport!"

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

On the way back after taking down the robot, Noah rode with Rex again, and thought he heard Rex say something, which was muffled by the blasting wind from their high speed.

"Huh, come again?"

"I said, sorry I was a sorry piece of shit. I know I made everyone worried," Rex spoke louder, above the sound of the blasting air.

"Rex, you. Are. Not. A. Piece. Of. Shit," Noah said critically, a word at a time for emphasis, squeezing Rex's waist, "But I will say you had been a lifeless, gloomy, undead zombie recently."

"Yea, that too. Sorry about that."

At Rex's ashamed and guilty tone, Noah moved his arms upwards to his shoulders and rubbed them in effort to console him.

"That's alright, Rex, so long as you have come back to life."

"Yea. A hundred percent."

Noah became immensely relieved to hear it.

:::::::::::::::::

Later, when they returned to base, Rex wanted to have a three player game with Noah and Bobo as an apology for being grumpy towards his EVO ape.

Before that, Holiday radioed him to go down to the lab for his usual health scan, so while waiting, Noah went to the upper showers near Rex's room, wanting to rinse off his sweat.

Noah barely got into a cubicle and was about to close the door when Nathan suddenly barged in, slamming the door against the wall forcefully.

He had a haughty smirk that alerted Noah to so many things.

"Uh Nathan, are you going to just park yourself there?" Noah lifted a brow in question, trying to figure what he was playing at.

There was no mistaking that predatory gaze snaking all over his naked body. Noah shivered abit, unused to Nathan's sudden attention. Nathan hadn't really flirted with him, at least not more than how he flirted and teased everyone, so Noah was sure he wasn't interested.

"Yea, but don't let it bother you. Just carry on and pretend I'm not here."

Even if there wasn't anyone around, the upper showers was still a common area where anyone could walk in. So Noah couldn't believe how brazen he was.

"I don't mind," Noah replied coolly, determined not to be fazed, "Though, you should probably strip or your clothes will get wet."

"Good idea," Nathan replied and started stripping, much to Noah's annoyance.

"Hey, hey, you know I was being sarcastic, right?" Noah started pushing him out, but Nathan was equally forceful, pushing back in.

"C'mon Noah, it's a good opportunity to relax and have some fun after the mission,"

An arm clad in Rex's signature orange jacket suddenly hooked over Nathan's shoulder, assisting Noah to drag him out.

"Alright, fun time is over," Rex snapped, veins popping along his temples.

"Hey, what gives man? I was just playing around," Nathan defended, and skillfully spun out of Rex's grasps, "And you never used to care who I paw."

"I don't care if it's anyone else. Just not Noah. I believe I said Noah isn't your peepshow."

"Right, so only he gets special treatment, huh?" Nathan lifted a brow and gave Noah a peculiar, haughty look.

"Of course! Gotta protect my buddy from wolves like you!" Rex crossed his arms, agitated.

"Alright Mr. Possessive, I get your point," Nathan gave up but still maintained a cool demeanor, walking away and waving over his shoulder.

"I'm not possessive, just 'protective', there's a difference!" Rex called after but Nathan ignored him.

"Rex, thanks for the save." A smile tugged at Noah's face seeing Rex in his usual goofy self. Since Rex bothered enough to respond to Nathan's provocative nonsense, it meant that he was really up and over his abysmal mental state.

Rex turned to him, eyebrows twitching.

"You should be more careful! You already know Nathan's aggressive libido," Rex chided, gripping Noah's shoulder and staring him straight in the eye, "It's a good thing I came over!"

Noah stifled a laugh at his over reacting.

"Che, are you my dad? And don't make me up as a helpless lamb. You forget, I can handle myself. And besides, I didn't think I was on his sexy list."

"Are you stupid? Of course you are! You're darn right sexy! How could anyone not think that?"

Rex's gaze flickered down Noah's chest and further as he said that, then widened, and finally shot back up. His ears reddened first, pairing an embarrassed look on his face, stunning Noah, since it wasn't like they had anything to be shy about, as grown men.

"Uh, I don't mean that in a weird way," Rex said in a rush, "I mean, you know… Anyway, I'll wait for you in the room."

Rex quickly exited, his fleeing footsteps in rhythm to Noah's stampeding pulse.

It was déjà vu of the other day, except that this time their positions were reversed and _Noah_ was the one naked in the shower.

 _Shit_ , Noah flushed, skin warmed a couple of degrees hotter even though he'd just finished a cold bath. He knew he shouldn't get his hopes up, but Rex's reaction, the look that he was wearing, the way he got flustered… made Noah get all hopelessly excited.

:::::::::::::::::

"Here he is," a deep voice announced, unceremoniously dropping the haggard scientist onto the cold, metal floor.

*Brandon Moses scrambled from his invisible kidnapper, who had picked up him out from nowhere and wasn't detected even by the Nanite Master Rex. One moment he was playing mind games with Providence, and the next, he was here, in a large chamber with walls that were lined with control panels from floor to ceiling. He would have jumped with joy working in such futuristic interiors, but first, he had to run for his freedom.

"Excellent work," a raspy voice alerted him to another EVO seated above in a massive, tangled pile of thick wires and coils.

With polished, jet black armor like obsidian, decorated with rings of amethyst lights along the limbs and crown of the head, it looked like the king of grim reapers.

Panicking from the unknown EVO, Brandon cast furtive looks backwards for a way out and was startled to see a form reveal itself in the middle of the chamber, like a magic veil was peeled away from it in mid air. A ten foot tall humanoid EVO with luminous emerald lights running over dark olive green robotic parts, loomed right at his feet, catching his ankle.

"*Xanubian? Y-you're Time-Meta!" Brandon stammered, recognizing the infamous EVO, "How'd did you make yourself invisible?"

"I thought a genius like yourself should be able to guess," Time-Meta commented, but answered anyway, "Super speed."

"Ah, yes, I see now. What incredible marvel!" Brandon gushed, forgetting about his fear, his obsession over science mysteries quickly overtaking him like how it warped his morals.

"But I don't think I ever found any record or evidence that your capabilities reached that speed," Brandon started questioning, analytical habit kicking into gear.

"That's because it's all thanks to me, that he's able to upgrade."

Brandon turned back to regard the other EVO, realization dawning.

"Ahh, I see, you must be *Modifier."

"Very astute. Though I must say, I'm surprised that you know."

Brandon felt a bubble of laughter rise up his throat and allowed himself a small chortle.

"Ahh, _The Rise_ sees all. There's nothing you can hide. My master have known about you for some time. And now, you've saved us the trouble of locating you."

He went all out with raucous laughter over Modifier's stupidity, until the EVO suddenly grew in height. _No, no_ , he realized, not that the EVO grew, but more accurately, it rose on the thick cascade of coils beneath its feet.

Branden choked at the imposing sight. Swarms of coils actually connected from its back and it pushed the EVO upwards and forwards, moving like a serpentine demon. He trembled as the EVO neared, and wet himself, when its face was inches from his, feeling pleasurable ecstasy from the combination of terror and utmost rapture.

"I'm flattered by your Master's interest. I can say the same –" the EVO slowly, hypnotically swayed round Brandon in a circle, ice cold stone grey coils brushing Brandon's skin and causing him to shiver.

"I too have been intrigued by The Rise, which is why I've brought you here."

"Ah yes, that I should thank you, for whisking me safely away from the damn Providence."

Modifier laughed, a sinister static sound that made his toes curl.

"But who said you're safe here with me?"

Alarm bells rang in Brandon's muddled brain.

"You can't do anything to me if you wish to converse with my Master. I'm the only link you have."

More coils wrapped around him, till he was completely covered, save his face. Then without warning, tiny pinpricks of electric current jolted him, the sensation similar to putting a wet finger on the switch.

"Yes, indeed you are right, I can detect it now. You're connected through your eyes, attached with nanites that are controlled by them," Modifier stated coldly, "They will see everything you do and most likely hear everything too."

"What do you want," Brandon squeaked, rasping as the EVO suddenly tightened its hold on him like a snake trying to strangle its prey.

Modifier stared into his eyes.

"A business proposition."

Then it squeezed Brandon till his bones cracked and his veins and organs burst.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

 ***Dr. Rhodes:** She appears in Season 1 gravity as Doctor Rhodes. I've promoted her to Holiday's assistant in this story. Her full name, Amelia Rhodes.

 ***Ray :** Yea, I'm sure you remembered that bastard from chapter 14, right? lol. In case you forgot, he's the horrible fella who blackmailed Noah to kidnap him for sadistic sexual torture. When Rex came to save him, Ray ordered his illegally modified domestic robot to attack.

*Brandon Moses : He was abducted by The Rise and forced to work on nanites modifications. Rex found him in the Dome in previous chapter, and confronted him about their motives, but before he could bring him back to Providence for further questioning, he was snatched away by another fiend (Xanubian)

 ***** **Xanubian/ Time-Meta:** An ex-member of the Consortium. Given the ability to control space and time.

 ***Modifier** : the genius, high tech weapons developer linked to many underground trading of high-tech weapons. Also suspected to be pulling some strings that seemed to stir up the Ex-Consortium members, one after the other.


	28. Cold Similarities

**Chapter 28: Cold Similarities**

(Providence battles new adversaries with eerily familiar powers…. )

* * *

Insufferable heat, check.

Army of sandy, undead Terracotta soldiers, check, check.

One _fucking pissed off_ Rex battling in the middle of the Mongolian desert, triple check.

Providence had received an SOS from Interpol earlier, where Interpol was investigating the transportation of stolen Terracotta soldiers from China to Russia. Unfortunately, when Interpol secured the cargo freight and opened the hatch, the Terracotta soldiers came to life and started attacking them. Obviously far out of their scope and capabilities, they'd called Providence for urgent assistance.

Now here, the fight had barely started, but Rex was already exhausted, having punched through and decapitated all thirty-six of them, _thrice_. Yet they showed no sign of going down, limbs and gaping holes instantly refilling and reforming as if ancient, Chinese shaman magic was at work. It was as fruitless as hitting sand –oh wait, he _literally_ was, punching through mounds of sands.

EVO-sand figures or nanites-infused sand as what Six reported to main control through the comm-links that connected everyone. Whatever they were, these sandy bastards refused to go down.

They were adept at solidifying themselves into hardened clay at a fraction of a second, thus able to deal solid hits whilst they engaged the officers in hand-and-leg combat. Yet at the same time, they could break down their form into millions of sand, becoming soft and malleable, so they were unhurt from blows delivered to them.

And they were getting more clever and skilled too, getting better at dodging hits and striking back. A dizzying dozen of fists would suddenly appear and strike Rex rapidly, too fast for him to block adequately. And though he struck back with giant gauntlets, they would disperse into the wind, completely untouched, then reform elsewhere to deal more damage. Others would stay in the same spot, tauntingly allowing Rex to hit them, but when his punches entered their body, they then hardened, causing him to get stuck in position whilst they struck back with the force of a sand bag.

Rex was bruising from the countless punches landed on him. It felt every inch of his bones were clacked, pain pounding from within with bitch-screaming intensity. Growling and howling in pain wasn't enough to express how badly he hurt. Even so, he was lucky he had nanite-reinforced defenses that hardened his body like metal, enough such that his bones held up against the powerful punches.

His not-so-robust teammates on the other hand, suffered under the crushing force of clay fists driven into their bodies with nearly twice the force of an average boxer. Six had growled at the three platoons to stay the hell out of punching range once he learnt their formidable strength. However, the bastards were literally shifty sand, collapsing like sand castle kicked over then reappearing elsewhere in a flash. The troops had to maintain quick reflexes and had to be extremely alert to always keep tabs on these jumping positions. But try as they might, their human limitation made them more susceptible to openings – several officers simply couldn't dodge in time. Rex lower jaw had become a pool bed strung tight with risen saliva from seeing several officers get their arms broken in contorted, bone-splitting fashion. In the back of his head, Rex was heaps thankful that Noah's platoon was _not_ amongst the troops today, for this sandy demons were too much a handful to beat, and Rex sure as hell couldn't stomach it if he saw Noah's limbs get snapped the wrong way round.

At the front of his head, Rex was cursing himself of his inability. All of this could be avoided, _if_ Rex was able to switch off the nanites, but he wasn't, which frustrated him further.

Needless to say, laser and electric type weapons were also useless against it, as was Providence's flamethrower. They were dealing with sand here, and the very element itself was sort of resistant to fire and electricity. If that was not bad enough, the photon barriers were inadequate to cage every particle of nanite-active sand in one shot. Since their bodies could break away into millions of grains, scattering along the wind and reform in short distances away, they were impossible to beat. Still, it was the only solution they could employ, hoping to gradually siphon the nanite-active sand bit by bit till they were eventually all collected. They employed the Sludge Bomb too, which helped to coagulate chunks of sand together, hardening them and reducing the volume of free-moving nanites-sand.

It was a bit slow and tedious, but gradually, the sandy climate began to calm down, the Terracotta soldiers having reduced to just half their figures.

But just when everyone thought the way to victory was secured, the remaining eighteen Terracotta suddenly burst simultaneously, millions of sand suddenly flying together to form a swirling vortex that began slim in the middle of their battlefield. That quickly expanded into a giant, sandy hurricane, girth increased in size as it grew taller, stretching towards the sky, giving the troops a good reason to scramble away and put a large distance between them. The windy momentum sucked up the desert sand and soil into itself, growing monstrously – then like a hungry beast, it picked the officers off the ground as if they weighed nothing but rag dolls.

Everything happened too fast for Providence to run far away enough – and anyway, in these barren valleys of nothing but cracked soil and sand, there was nowhere for them to run and hide and take cover. Rex was stricken to see his comrades picked off the ground and sucked into the whirlwind, one right after the other. He had initially had his feet materialized into a heavy ton of metal to keep himself grounded. But once he saw his comrades sucked into the windy beast, he released his anchors, opened up his jet pack and dived into the fray, hoping to catch them.

It was a dumb move of course, particularly since he neglected to create an air-flight mechanism or engine drive strong enough to oppose the herculean spinning. By the time he realized his mistake, he was dragged into the current like a helpless insect, the force impaling against his chest all but preventing him from releasing his screams of terror.

 _Hurry, Rex, get a hold of yourself. Come on buddies, become something, something that can oppose the spinning force._

Rex chanted inwardly whilst he struggled to control his nanites in the midst of the turbulence. However, his usual control didn't come easily. The outer wave of sand thrashing him about, chafing his skin, was full of active nanites that hindered his senses of his own inner nanite movement. It was especially disorienting to get a grip on things when he was hurtling round and round on a merry-go-round on speeds gone haywire.

In the middle of his struggling, the whirling winds suddenly died –or rather, he felt the swarm of outer nanite-sand cease its activity. He knew that instant, the hurricane has stopped, and was surprised how it stopped, but he didn't dwell on it. The fading air current still carried the sand a couple of yards in the air and would be a while before the sands would fall lifelessly. Humans, on the other hand, with no air resistance, would fall instantly.

Rex wasted no time. He was quick to zip across the sky on jet boosters at his feet and built a sort of basket-pit to extend above his shoulders, in order to catch about eleven odd guys falling from their great heights. Another ten he caught within giant palms of modified hands. After catching the last guy, Rex landed roughly with a clumsy running halt, kicking up splashes of loose top soil in his trail. Finally, he crashed to his knees, breathing ragged like the vortex had sucked his breath, and released his hold on the officers he rescued.

Palms sinking into the top soil, he panted heavily facing the ground, thoroughly exhausted and winded. His chest felt like it was about to burst, so still catching his breath, he was unable to formulate any expression of surprise when he sees a pair of boots stop before him and hears Caesar's voice.

"Mijo, are you doing alright?" Caesar went over to him and helped him up, brushing the sand off him.

Rex couldn't yet answer, still panting for breath, but was glad to see Caesar with worried brows, worried for him.

Then he noticed Caesar carrying a staff that looked oddly familiar. He raised a weak arm, pointing at it questioningly.

"Oh, this? Ah, this is the Nanite Disruptor that I believe Providence had confiscated from Hunter Cain during your mission at Kiev."

"- it – stopped –the – sandstorm?" Rex asked in between ragged breaths.

Caesar nodded, smiling.

"Pretty handy, isn't it? It's exactly what's needed to disrupt the active function of these nanite-embedded sand."

"Doctor Salazar," Six called from behind, dusting sand off his shoulders and hair as he came up to them, "I see you dropped in at the right moment. Thanks for the save."

"Oh, no problem at all."

Six notices the Nanite Disruptor as well and mentions his surprise that it was with Caesar instead of the weapons team. Caesar then explained Holiday had wanted him to look it over and study it. He went on marveling at the make and remarked it was extremely hard to create, even for himself. He jokingly remarked that if he had thought of this first instead of *Zag RS, Rex could have had a lot less trouble before.

Rex gave a weak laugh, while Six maintained a straight face, which was nothing new, since Six had nearly zero humor.

In any case, done talking, Caesar helped Rex up, then collected some samples of the nanite sand to study. Meechum came out their travel Pod as well for sample collection. The rest of the combat team meanwhile, were administering first aid to one another while waiting for pick up. Rex joined in helping whoever he could, but noticing Six casting constant glances at Caesar, he went over to Six and nudged him.

"Is there something on your mind about my brother?"

Six pushed his glasses up on his nose.

"Yea, just curious how he got here so fast."

"Well, did you forget? Their ship is able to travel at hyper speed."

"I know that, but how did he know to come exactly right on time when we need it?"

Rex frowned, getting where Six was getting it, but also perturbed why Six was being suspicious of his older brother.

"Isn't it because he has some kind of tracker that could read me, like all the time? That's what Providence does too. Besides, he must have gotten strange nanites readings of this area, in his system."

Six didn't reply, suddenly running off, bringing Rex to attention that Caesar and Meechum were leaving.

"Wait, doctor – the Nanite Disruptor – I believe I should take it into Providence's care," he shouted.

Caesar must be too far to hear, for he simply waved back and shut the door, and the Pod took off before Six could reach it.

::::::::::::::::::::::

Returning to Providence base, Rex and team related their findings to Holiday. Rex was especially creeped out, noticing the similarity of the nanite infused sand of these Terracotta, to Van Kleiss's old power. It was only short of sucking the nanites from every other human and petrifying. Still, the way the sands moved so fluidly like they were alive, brought every memory of Rex's battle with the malicious mastermind. Sure, the Mongolian desert was no *Abysian soil, but that kind of manipulation of earth and sand looked right up his alley. Hence, Rex made the suggestion that this could be Van Kleiss's doing.

Holiday's assistant, Amelia, refuted that, deducting that it would not make sense for Van Kleiss to put forth such a plan when he knew Cain had lost the Nanite Disruptor to them.

"Then, what if he didn't know about Cain? He wouldn't be part of The Rise, isn't it?" someone else questioned.

No one had clear answers. Not on who was behind this and what the motives were. In any case, they couldn't ascertain anything until the Science division runs tests on the nanite sand and come up with more leads.

Hence, the mission debrief ended on a page of unanswered questions, and more troubling news to come.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"So, what do you think? Looks abit like your old powers, doesn't it?" Modifier asked, looking into a floating eyeball with wires attached to it.

"Quite impressive," the speech transmission came through a set of speakers that was separately wired, "I thought at first that the Modifier was only all brawn and no brains. I did not pen you to be a scientist."

The dark EVO gave a raspy, electronic-sounding laugh. The other party's tone was as proud and cocky as Modifier remembered – a two-timing bastard scientist who saw little of others whom he deemed were not equal to his intellect. But here now, Modifier had reached a position that could finally put that arrogant harpy to place.

"But this does not mean that you can decapitate my dog as you will. I still had use for his intellect. Though I suppose that gave us the excuse to get his immediate replacement, *Doctor Pete Volkov.

"Tsk, tsk, which was why I'd saved his brain."

Modifier decided to show the other party what it meant. The EVO fluidly picked up the glass container, that contained Brandon Moses' eyes, with one of the extended, squid-like tentacles connected at its back. Slowly turning the container a full round, Modifier showed off many humanoid robots working around the lab and Brandon's brain in a stasis jar with wires connected to it.

"As you can see, I've been able to control nanites and communicate with them far superior than you can, or Rex, for that matter."

There was a long pause and heavy breathing.

Modifier laughed quietly, no doubt that fact had dealt a huge blow to the conceited fellow.

"Interesting, you are able to create any advance tech you desire," finally, the other party remarked, and Modifier could just picture the ire in his face, "And yes, I did notice it since you had deactivated the Nanite bomb I implanted inside his brain. Perhaps I should have gotten Doctor Brandon to study you instead of Noface."

"Hah, that is needless to say. Noface's power is nothing."

"As is mine, compared to yours. Why then, keep up this charade of pleasant talk? Why don't you come and take me out? _Unless_ , you think I could be of some use to you."

Modifier expected him to be sharp, catching the ball right away.

Choosing its words carefully, it continued.

"Obviously – I wouldn't keep competition by my side otherwise. And it is a fair enough transaction for you, since you know you can use my expertise. You've been paddling in the wrong pond and coming up without any fish for far too long."

Heavy silence hung from the other line, drawing impatience from Modifier.

Nonetheless, it was confident in its plan to succeed. Creating the nanite sand was just a demonstration to showcase Modifier's abilities. It was the bait to convince the other party and win him over. Months and years of trial and error was spent on altering Nanites that couldn't be shut down by Rex's Omega-1. The main shortfall was, it could only bond with inorganic materials, and of course, it wasn't completely invincible – it could still be broken down through other means, which Providence had proven twice – once to the *bombs at the oil rig and just recently, the nanite-sand deactivated in the presence of the Nanite Disruptor. To stand right at the very top, Modifier needed to strengthen these altered nanites and find a way to fuse them into its own, organic, intercellular body. Which was why, Modifier was desperate for help, needing this bio-scientist's expertise to work around the organic, cellular bonding problem.

"You know from our history," the man finally spoke, slowly and questioning, "that we are both used to throwing away our allies after we have no more use to them. Does this not concern you?"

"Of course not, it remains that we are still opponents of each other. Whoever attains their goal first, need not show mercy to the other."

A deep, oddly melodious laughter answered Modifier.

"My, my, we are certainly alike. Very well then, we shall see, what we can get out from each other. Just no hard feelings, if I dispose of you in the middle of it, if you prove to be useless to me."

"Of course, and don't mind me if I do the same to you," Modifier replied.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

 **Footnotes / Recap:**

*Doctor Pete Volkov: From the cartoon. A Russian Providence scientist. He appeared in the space station episode in season 1.

*Zag RS: from the cartoon; an intelligent decontamination nanite computer software created by Caesar that went rouge.

*bombs at the oil rig: In chapter 4, Rex was unable to deactivate the nanite bombs at the foundation pillars of the oil rig, as the nanites had been skillfully altered, now revealed, by Modifier.

*Abysian soil: The lab explosion caused Van Kleiss to be bonded with Abysus and fused with nanites. At the beginning he uses this soil/ abysian fauna for his attacks and to stay alive.


	29. Playing House

**Chapter 29: Playing House**

(Someone's got a big secret! Congratulations are in order!~ )

* * *

Rex was in the middle of his usual check up with Holiday, with Noah just chilling by the side lazily since it was also his break time. The rest of her team was oddly not around, but over at Weapons and Tech department instead, discussing over something. Rex wondered aloud if Holiday should be there, but she assured him that her assistant, Rhodes, was taking care of things.

"Besides, I'm actually waiting for someone important to call. We have a date," Holiday announced rather happily, which confounded him, making him curious to know who that was.

When the video call came in, it turned out that person was her younger sister, *Beverly.

She was a younger version of Holiday, equally dark haired and pretty like her older sister, but just with make-up three times heavier, probably because she was going to be performing. It looked like she was in a private dressing room, all dressed up, flashy, glittery top showing.

"Hi sis! Oops, sorry, hope I'm not interrupting anything," Beverly looked at the other two guys, "Hey Rex, Noah."

"It's alright, Beverly, just a routine check-up," Rex assured and sat up on the biometric bed, "So, you looked dressed up, about to start your show, are you?"

"Mmh-hmm, but I'm still early, because I'm so excited, I started prepping wayyy before time. I'm in a new town today and it looks like we've sold more tickets than we anticipated!" she squealed at the end after speaking in a rush.

Holiday laughed.

"Well, isn't that great! You sound like you're having fun."

The sisters carried on talking for a bit, and Rex smiled at their closeness. Not to be a tear jerker, but if *Beverly was never cured or was sold off by Brandon to the underground market, the sisters would never be able to have such a reunion. They obviously cared about each other a lot, even if they were far apart, since Holiday's work kept her here, and Beverly ended up being scouted by a talent agency after high school, and got signed on with a band. Rex thought it was cool that though Holiday herself was a genius in her field, she fully supported Beverly in her dreams and gave her free reins on her pursuits. Needless to say, Beverly became a huge hit, and went on tours playing music around the country.

Beverly was an energetic ball, ecstatic over her concert that was starting soon, and shared cool updates about her life on the road. There were a lot of new stuff happening, mostly because they hadn't talked to each other in a long while, given that both parties were so busy. Holiday was happy for Beverly, glad that things were going smoothly in her career. But time passed too quickly.

A rap was heard at her door, to which Beverly pouted abit.

"Well, I guess I have just about five minutes to rehearsal. You know, for final mic test and stuff."

Holiday smiled, a soft look coming to her eyes.

"It's alright, we'll find time to talk again. Meanwhile, you go and kill'em tonight!"

Beverly laughed.

"Oh my god! It sounds so weird, hearing it come from you!"

Rex and Noah glanced at each other, hiding their smiles, fully agreeing with Beverly.

"Oh, you think I'm too serious, do you?" Holiday crooked a brow.

Beverly laughed again. "I have to go."

Six came in at that point, and on seeing him, a strange look suddenly passed over Holiday's face.

"Wait, Beverly – actually," Holiday stopped her before she cut the video-call, "I have something very important to tell you."

"OooOkay," Beverly raised her brows, suddenly looking serious, mirroring Holiday's face.

Holiday gave Six a pointed look as if searching for affirmation. At just the tiniest nod of his head, Holiday took a deep breath.

"I'm pregnant."

It took nearly three seconds for the bomb to drop.

Beverly broke the silence first, screaming her head off and bouncing up and down her seat.

" _Oh my god!_ Wow! I can't believe it! You are pregnant? _My big sister's pregnant?!_ "

" _Pregnant!_ " Rex and Noah shouted in unison, " _Holiday?_ "

Holiday laughed. "Calm down, you guys."

"How could I calm down? I'm going to be an aunt now! That's like, the coolest ever!" Beverly was ecstatic, face lit like the sun, and went on asking, "So, _who's the lucky dad_?"

Holiday gave Six a pointed look and he cleared his throat, before saying, " _It's me_ , Beverly, I hope you'll welcome me into your family."

Rex and Noah immediately exchanged looks, big eyes mirroring each other's.

 _Holy shit._

" _Yours_? And _Holiday_?" they exclaimed whilst Beverly screamed again.

" _Oh my god! Ninja King is gonna be my brother-in-law!_ The band is gonna be sooooo jealous when they hear this!"

The two boys were having more difficulty believing it, because Six and Holiday was in this weird, secret, yet not so secret relationship in forever, looking like there hadn't been any progress when it comes to Holiday getting a rock on her finger. Then all of a sudden, boom! There's a kid.

"That can't be true!" Rex shouted in disbelief. He was happy of course, but even more than that, he was mind-boggled.

"It is, I'm five months pregnant," she confirmed, and unbuttoned her lab coat, revealing the unmistakable baby bump under her knit tee and short skirt.

Rex's eyes nearly popped out his sockets. Noah's jaw dropped.

"So that's how you _hid it!_ " Beverly laughed.

" _Unbelievable!_ How did that happen?" Noah stared at Six and Holiday.

"Yea! How could you have kept this a secret from your adopted son for so long?" Rex gave a mock aghast look.

"There was an accident," Six deadpanned, though the corners of his lips turned upward just the teeniest bit to tell Rex that Six was glad that it happened.

"No way! Six in an accident? I thought he's never careless!" Noah exclaimed.

Holiday stifled a laugh.

"It's my fault, actually. I may have _'accidently'_ poked holes into the rubber," Holiday joked.

Rex, Noah and her sister choked and coughed dramatically. Hearing that from someone as proper as Holiday, was almost akin to her talking about porn.

"Oh god," Noah rasped out a few seconds later.

Rex recovered first and folded his arms, giving a lopsided smile.

"Well, it's about time. You two are almost ancient now. Good that you got the baby before you're too old."

Holiday nodded.

"But it'd be hard to juggle. My work keeps me busy here all the time and Six is always away on missions. And it's not like we can hire a nanny and keep her within Providence grounds twenty-four hours."

The group mulled over it quietly for a few seconds, and just then, Bobo entered, since it was about time for his routine check-up too. Seeing him, Rex couldn't resist to joke.

"Nah, why get one, when we have Bobo? He's such a great nanny!"

Six gave him a pointed look, "Yea, seeing how you turned out? Maybe not."

"Huh?" Bobo was clueless, having not joined from the start of the conversation, but he looked rather affronted by Six's statement.

"What's this about nannies and me and Rex?"

Everyone ignored him, more pressing matters on their minds.

"How about a Nanny bot?" Beverly suggested, "It's pretty new on the market, but it seems safe enough and has been growing in popularity."

"I don't know, doesn't seem so safe," Holiday nibbled on her lips.

"Argh! _Dang it!_ I can't be there because of my tour!" Beverly lamented, and looked a bit sad, "Otherwise, I could totally help with babysitting!"

"Don't fret about it, Beverly, we'll figure things out here. If anything, we have a big family here at Providence," Six assured and gave an actual, proper smile that was warm and kind, sending the young woman glowing.

Another rap came to her door.

"Thanks Six, I know that. And well, I'll talk with my band and manager and see if I can work something out from my side," Beverly quickly said, "Sorry, but I really have to go. Call you again!"

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Mijo! I missed you," Caesar strode across the room and gave Rex a bear hug, "I was wondering how you were since Mongolia. I believed I dropped you a message to come visit me, but you didn't."

Rex stared at his older brother, wondering how his highly intellectual yet skewered brain doesn't change.

"I would have, but you never told me were you were. Besides, _you_ could have visited."

"Oops, you are right. I guess I was too busy that I forgot."

Rex couldn't help but burst out laughing at that point. Yea, some things just don't change and it was good to see his older brother again. Caesar rarely contacts him and when he does, their chats were limited to a few minutes. His brother would constantly be distracted or be in danger in the middle of some experiment and had to cut their conversations short. One would think Caesar cared for his science projects more than he did for his brother, especially since even though he'd been coming by more frequently this year, his first stop was always to the Science lab first, instead of Rex. Though, since the Nanite war was a huge deal that affected Rex intrinsically, one could argue Caesar was so obsessed with his work, out of concern for his brother.

"If you're here to give important intel to Holiday, you know where to find her," Rex quickly brought the conversation to what he knew was top priority on Caesar's agenda.

"Oh, I do, but actually, I'm here first to congratulate her, on her baby."

For a moment, Rex thought his brother was psychic since he hadn't told him. Then thinking clearer, he asked, "So she told you?"

"No, Amelia did."

Rex was mildly surprised, not realizing that anyone would bother informing Caesar on such matters, since he had such a one track mind.

"Well, actually, since you know, could you stay long?"

"Oh yes, till Friday, right? Amelia told me," Caesar nodded, surprising Rex yet again that the one to share the news, was not from him.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The Science department was bubbling with an unusual energy lately, chattering and laughing a lot more than usual, even humming to themselves. Not to say they were a gloomy bunch – which was what the rest of Providence calls them – but this week passed with them having a strange lightness to their step and a more cheerful disposition. It was rather hard for Holiday to put an exact finger on it, but as Head of the department, she could definitely tell that something was up.

And finally, Holiday knew why. Her staff threw a small, congratulation party for Six and her, within the upper cafeteria. She had gone over to the small dining hall like usual on *Friday nights, where she would have dinner with her *extended family, and was basically surprised by the huge banner and colorful balloons decorating the place.

Holiday was overjoyed, touched from their sweet and warm gestures. Captain Calan and even some of the combat lieutenants like Shadow and Kenwyn was also around. Even Caesar and *his crew were there, which explained why their Pod remained parked at Providence base for a week, even though they hadn't stopped by her lab. Guess they were here for this rather than work.

"C'mon, Mommy, take a seat and make yourself comfortable!" Amelia chirped excitedly, eyes twinkling, pulling Holiday by the hand and sitting her down in front of an array of scrumptious desserts.

"I hope you didn't mind, but well, when Rex came to me with the idea of a making a small celebratory meal, I thought we should share the good news with our whole department!"

Holiday smiled.

"Of course it's okay, Amelia, in fact I can't thank all of you enough for making time to put this together!"

Amelia beamed happily.

The evening passed as a joyous occasion and truly light-hearted affair, with warm conversations and even some raunchy jokes thrown at the couple's expanse – but all in good humor. Holiday felt blessed to receive their blessings and little gifts of congratulations. But even more than that, she realized the mini party was a good way for her team to unwind. Thinking back, the Nanite war has really been affecting their nerves for the last few months, pulling them down. White Knight had been pushing them hard, breathing down their necks with truckloads of questions, many of which they had no answers for. And since Rex was one of their main responsibilities, they basically get pulled along the roller coaster of his nanite levels and mood. Holiday realized that she really should plan these types of recreation or get togethers more frequently to bolster their spirits.

"Hey! What's this for? I'm not three, you know?" Rex complained aloud in the middle of the party, catching everyone's attention.

He stared down at the baby bib suddenly tied around his neck.

"Well, sometimes with the way you act, I can't tell," Holiday joked, coming up to his side.

Rex turned the other way then nearly fell out of his chair, cracking Holiday up.

"Robo Bobo!" Rex scrambled out his chair, then stared at the imposer in horror. "No way! Noah, prep the gun, Bobo's made another stupid dummy again!"

Rex pointed at the offending machine. Rex wasn't going to be fooled twice. *Bobo made an almost perfect replica of himself before, except for his character, which Rex could see right through.

Everyone was also baffled, until Bobo's loud laughter came from the door.

"Don't fret, this is just practice for Robo Nanny Bobo," Bobo announced in a rather enthusiastic manner, "I'm trying out his programming and getting him to familiarize with his environment and interactions."

"You mean 'It'" Noah corrected, pointing his fork indignantly from across the table.

Then the robot came over and tied a baby bib on Noah, much to his annoyance.

"Hey!" Noah protested, but proceeded to untie the bib, but found it impossible to undo the knot.

"Seriously, what is this about?" Rex was suspicious, just as Holiday was, and needless to say, Six, who was frowning hard.

"My painstaking invention, of a nanny who will take care of all your baby needs!" Bobo declared to Holiday and planted his hands on his hips, looking mighty proud of himself.

"I know it's a work of marvel, if I do say so myself," Bobo continued proudly, "But fret not, out of the goodness of my heart, I won't charge you a single penny."

Holiday wagged her brows, suspicious of Bobo's sudden graciousness.

"Bobo, don't tell me you're trying to prove something or whatever to Six, are you?" Rex asked aloud, ever aware of the EVO ape's thoughts.

"You know me so well," Bobo grinned, "Since he was something to gripe about how I raised you, I have to defend my domestic skills and reliability, don't I?"

Then Bobo looked straight at Six and pointed at him.

"I'll show you just how much of a good nanny I could be."

"But uh, isn't it defeating the purpose when you are _not_ the actual one doing the uh – diaper changing, and feeding, and all that?" Noah pointed out.

Bobo looked at him like he was stupid.

"He represents me, since I created him. Whatever that I program and teach him to do, he'll do it. So he _is_ me."

"Right."

"Besides," Bobo gave a snicker, "Robo Nanny Bobo will save me from giving all the disgusting, exaggerated show of affection. And I won't need to puke over soiled baby diapers."

"Uh-huh, so that's why," Noah laughed, shaking his head.

Rex decided to test it out immediately, going over to give Robo Nanny Bobo a bear hug.

"You're right! No dishing out annoyed remarks at me!"

"That is _quite_ amazing," Holiday finally spoke up slowly, "I _do_ appreciate the sentiment, but…"

Well, it's obvious she wasn't going to use it, but she had to think of a way to break it gently to the monkey…

"We're not going to take it even if you _paid_ us," Six finished for her, rejecting Bobo in his ever, 'tactful' manner.

 _Oh boy, there they go again…_

Bobo bared his teeth at Six, which was as far as him showing his displeasure towards Six, goes. He didn't dare to threaten Six like he did to the other officers – no one in their right minds would. Which was why Holiday was glad he was the father of her child. She knew Six would fight to protect his flesh and blood and basically, no one would dare bully her kid.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The surprise party was a success! Rex couldn't be happier. He had always wanted to do something for Holiday, so when news of her kid came, it became an opportunity for him to show his appreciation towards her as well. Holiday was a lot relaxed and looked like she really enjoyed herself. Even Six loosened up and the two love birds allowed themselves to throw loving eyes at each other, looking blissful. And not just the two of them, everyone else in the Science department was also having a good time.

After most of the folks finished dinner, Amelia put on some songs and encouraged Six and Holiday to open the floor, who were also cheered on by the rest. They swung together, eyes locked on each other, smiles bright on their faces. Then Amelia and Caesar was suddenly the next to join them, and then another pair, and another and even Rex was on the floor – even though he sucked at these types of fancy dancing – randomly twirling Kenwyn round his hand. Kenwyn just laughed at his clumsiness when he stepped on her toes a couple of times.

"Thank god I'm wearing Providence boots and not my favourite heels," she declared, "Or I'll sock you!"

"Right, lucky me then."

They laughed.

Then he bumped into Noah behind him, and exchanged partners for a few twirls. The music then changed, and so did the dance, but after several dizzying spins, Rex retired from the floor, needing a quick rest and a drink. Noah joined him at the cocktail table, brows wagging.

"So, *you looked like you were having fun with Kenwyn."

Internally, Rex couldn't bear to admit that he'd been thinking that he'd rather *dance with Noah again like that time at the club, than with Kenwyn. But it was strange to have such a thought pass through his mind, so he kept mum.

"Mmh- hmm."

"Be careful though, I think Shadow has a thing for her," Noah pointed at the man who took Rex's place in being Kenwyn's dance partner, "You might be having some competition."

Rex rolled his eyes.

"Not that again."

"I'm serious, have you never crushed on that woman before?"

"How could I? When the only woman I had eyes on for the last several years, was Circe?"

"Okay, then how about considering her? You know, I've heard from the other guys about how great she is."

"Yea, I know how amazing she is, it's just, well, I'm _not_ really keen to have a relationship with anyone right now."

And Rex sorta meant it. Not to say that he was still in stitches over the break up, but thinking back, even with Circe, his relationship hadn't exactly been smooth sailing. They fought a lot and Rex learnt that it was really hard and complicated to maintain a relationship. So with what's going on with the Nanite wars, Rex really didn't want to deal with other troublesome matters.

Then, from the corner of his eyes, he noticed Caesar and his crew were leaving.

Without another word, Rex left Noah's side and quickly went over to Caesar, asking why he doesn't stay longer, since the party was still in full swing. Caesar only gave a strange reply, saying that he has stayed long enough already, which was dangerous. At Rex's confounded look, Caesar went on to explain that since a nanite scientist like Brandon Moses was captured by The Rise, it was not a good idea for him to hang around any one particular location for too long. On hearing that, Rex got even more confused.

"But Bro, doesn't this mean that all the more you guys should stay here? Providence will keep you safe," Rex insisted.

Caesar gave a bland smile, shaking his head.

"No Mijo, you should always remember, never to put all of your eggs into one basket."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Caesar," Holiday spoke into the video-comm in the wee hours of the night, "So, was there something that you waited all week to tell me?"

"You could basically tell, huh?"

"Of course, you came here way early before the party, parked here for a couple of days, but didn't step into my lab even once. I can't imagine you wasting all that fuel and time just to attend my celebration party. Though of course, I appreciate your well wishes anyway."

Caesar chuckled at how nothing escapes this sharp woman. It wasn't any wonder that she spearheaded Providence Science Department.

"Yes, actually, there is something that was a little inconvenient for me to talk if I'm there at your lab."

"Right, so what's this thing that you can't let Rex know about?"

Caesar wasn't taken back that she had come to that deduction. Given that Rex was somehow, almost always swinging by the lab whenever Caesar came, the fact that he didn't want to talk while being physically there, meant he didn't want Rex hearing.

Now, miles far from Providence and doing their long distance communication, Caesar felt safer.

He shared with Holiday on what he had studied on the nanite sand, exchanging notes with Holiday, drawing comparable nanites composition results to the *invasive Nanites. He also shared one more observation that Holiday did not have: according to Caesar's study records, it was akin to Black Knight's nanite construction.

"My god. So then the Modifier, is _Black Knight?_ " Holiday was grim.

"Most likely."

"This is huge! I have to let the team know."

"Do what you must, just, keep it from Rex, for now."

"You don't think he should know? Considering their history, Rex _should_ be the first to know."

"Then tell me, so what if he knew? What can he do? Can he find her?" Caesar reasoned, "Because you know as much as I do, if he can't, that's one more thing adding to his stress, and it may unnecessarily affect his nanites levels."

Holiday sighed, seeing where he was coming from.

"We'll get Providence Intel to locate her first. When we've confirmed her location, only then will we let him know."

Caesar nodded, agreeing.

"Same for my end, I will keep you updated, if I find anything."

 **End of chapter**

* * *

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

*Beverly – Holiday's younger sister. From the cartoon. She was incurable at first, but ended up cured via a dangerous machine, first created by Dr Moses, that they modified.

*his crew – Caesar's team that travels around with him in the pod. They are also the scientists in the Original Nanite Project – Gabriel Rylander and Peter Meechum.

*you and Kenwyn: In chpt 18, Noah teased Rex about it, suggesting that they make a good pair.

*Fridays/ extended family: Fridays were the only day the team had lunch together in a private room, as a tradition that started off in the episode "The Architect".

*invasive Nanites: Rex has encountered these a few times. First during the oil rig mission (chapt 3 & 4) The new type of nanites were installed in bombs that were a challenge to defuse since Rex could not manipulate them. Providence Science Division were also not able to uncover more since the nanites disintegrated after the bombs disarmed.

Second, when he battled a technological advanced robot that was a replica of Dynamo Meta-EVO (chapt 20 & 21)

*dance with Noah again like that time at the club : recall my chapter 11.


	30. Hide and Seek

**Chapter 30: Hide and Seek**

(Rex and his friends stumbles on a small, plain looking creature that gave them more trouble that it looked)

Rex was so excited, having waited forever. He'd been up before dawn to download the latest expansion for his Xbox, so once that was done, he went over to Noah's room and rapped at the door till a groggy Tio appeared.

"Hey, Rex," he croaked in his morning voice, rubbing his eyes sleepily, "What's up?"

"Morning!" Rex chirped, "Noah still asleep?"

Tio stepped aside to let him in, pointing at their bunk bed.

"Whoa!" Rex exclaimed as he saw the pile of bodies scattered all over the floor alongside empty beer bottles, "Crazy party last night?"

"Yea, we had a bit to drink," Tio replied as he lagged against the door in an attempt to stand upright awhile.

Rex stepped over them carefully.

"You guys don't have early training today, huh?"

"Ngh."

Rex chuckled to himself happily. _Great! This means Noah and I will be gaming all_ – his thoughts froze when he saw a chestnut-haired head peeking from the blanket.

 _Where's Noah?_

Then seeing blond strands tangled aside brown hair, Rex yanked off the blankets and balked to find the scandal of Nathan spooning Noah, arms wrapped around the blonde like a bolster.

Rex wrenched Nathan's legs upwards in a flash, bending it backwards like an MMA fighter.

Nathan was up instantly, howling in pain.

"What the fuck – _Rex?!_ " Nathan glared at him in a half turn, "What the hell are you doing?"

" _Punishing_ you for your unchivalrous beheavior."

"Excuse me! _You're_ the one trying to break my leg for no reason!"

"It's your punishment, for molesting my best friend."

"What the hell is going on?" Noah stirred awake, mumbling under his breath. Then when he saw them, his eyes went wide as saucers and his hands flew over Rex's to pull his arms away.

"Rex, quit it! What the hell are you doing?"

Rex relinquished his hold begrudgingly.

"What were you doing in bed?" he demanded to know.

Noah glared at him.

"Sleeping! Before _you_ rudely woke me!"

"No, I mean, why were you together in bed with him!" Rex pointed at Nathan.

"Duh, _sleeping_!"

A couple of the guys from the floor were woken from the commotion as well, and started groaning in irritation.

"Oh god, pipe down you guys!"

"Yea, take it outside…. God, hangover…"

"Yea, see, with these guys here," Nathan pointed with his chin, "You don't expect us to fuck around in bed, do you?"

A challenging glint came to Nathan's eyes, matching the devil of a smile as he slyly drew circles around Noah's thigh, who didn't seem to have noticed.

" _Stop_ molesting Noah!" Rex snapped and reached in to grab Nathan's wrist.

"Jesus Christ! REX!" Noah was out of bed instantly for damage control, pushing Rex away from the bed, "Would you get a hold of yourself?"

"Yea, what's with the big fuss?" Nathan crooked a brow, propping his head on an elbow, gaze taunting, "Unless, you're jealous?"

"No, I'm still trying to protect my buddy from big bad wolves like you!"

" _Jesus Rex_!" someone complained from the floor, "If you're jealous, just take Noah to _your_ bed!"

A pillow flew at him, followed by a couple of empty cans. Rex side stepped all of them.

"Hmm, good idea," he agreed and took Noah's hand.

However, Noah gave him the most annoyed glare and rudely shook off his hand.

"Just get out of my room! I still want to sleep!" Noah yelled, shoving Rex out and slamming the door behind him.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Yea, Rex, how many times do you want me to repeat myself? I already said Nathan didn't try anything funny with Noah last night," Tio repeated in an exasperated tone, loud enough to garner some stares from the surrounding passerby in the crowded market square.

Luckily, Nathan and Noah were on the opposite side so couldn't hear them.

"Yea, Rex, are you getting grandpa ears?" Bobo, who stood with Tio and Rex, asked sarcastically.

They were in the shopping street of a small, quaint town. At mid-morning, the open plaza was already bustling with activity from sellers hawking their wares and townspeople having breakfast and shopping for grocery.

"Ok, ok, I got it, I believe you," Rex held his palms straight up to ease Tio, then hooked an arm over his neck, continuing, "And you'll also help me keep watch on them, right?"

Tio, who almost never glared, because he was too nice, gave Rex a semblance of it.

"Well, isn't that why _I'm here_? During _my rest-time_ , accompanying _you_ , to keep watch on Nathan during their assignment," Tio pointed out unhappily.

Rex cleared his throat, realizing he might have irritated Tio too much.

"Yes, yes, and I'm thankful for that. Which is why I'll be in your debt," Rex clapped him on his back.

"And don't forget," Bobo pointed smugly at himself, "You'll be in my debt too."

"No I won't, I didn't ask you to come. You volunteered yourself," Rex pointed out.

"Then how about a reward for my volunteering spirit?"

"Uh, that's the thing, Bobo," Rex crossed his arms, "You don't get stuff from volunteering."

"You guys! Pay attention!" came Noah's shout.

A pinkish, jelly blob-like EVO shot towards Rex like lightning and bounced atop his head. Rex threw both hands over head, but caught empty air, the agile EVO already sailing several feet above the crowd. Half the size of a basketball, it bounced atop several heads of the Sunday shoppers, earning a few startled shouts, before disappearing into the crowd again.

"Crap, where did it disappear to again?" Tio complained, "It's taking almost too long to catch that slippery bastard!"

It was ranked threat level 1, so it was not considered dangerous, hence only two Providence officers were tasked to bring it back to HQ. Rex usually didn't butt his nose into small fry, however, when he learnt it was Noah with the wolf, of course he had to come to keep an eye on Nathan's wandering hands. Nathan had a habit of getting into people's personal space, so he sure as hell didn't want his best friend to be harassed.

It turned out it was a good thing Rex came along, since the deceptively harmless looking EVO was a slippery one to catch. The normal Providence collars and nets wouldn't work on it, and neither did a photon cage.

The five of them spread out, not sure from where the EVO might appear again. Many passersby gave them a wide berth, seeing their uniform as indication for trouble, but many yet remain unbothered, going about their own business since it was almost the norm to have Providence officers in the mix.

Rex got out his Slyder and hovered above everyone's head, hoping to get a better vantage point. When the pink blob next appeared, shooting out from the crowd, Rex was ready for it, having made a laser gun out of his hand. He shot it, slicing the jelly-like EVO into half.

"Great! You got it!" Tio cried from below.

It fell lifelessly without struggle, but Rex caught sight of the two halves rejoining before it disappeared behind a lady's giant sunhat.

"Fuck no! It fused back!" Rex made a beeline for her and descended sharply, causing the woman to have a Marilyn Monroe moment of her yellow dress flying about her.

She cried a bit in frenzy as she fought to keep her billowing skirt down. Rex didn't notice her disgruntles and crossed look, being too focused on searching for the pink blob whilst circling her.

"Excuse me, Sir, what exactly are you doing?" she asked sharply, finally getting his attention, arms crossing over her pretty frock.

 _Where is it?_ He was damn sure it didn't slip anywhere else. Looks like there was only _one_ place it could hide. He cleared his throat.

"Sorry mam, but I have to check under your skirt."

The slap that came to his cheek was so strong and unexpected that Rex spun in a half turn. Instead of being annoyed, he cradled his cheek and turned back to regard the primly dressed woman in an almost admiring manner.

"Woa, lady! You've got some strength there!"

"Rex! What the hell were you doing?" the other guys have caught up to him, initially having some difficulty getting through knots of people.

Rex didn't explain, attention caught by a tiny movement on her sunhat. A bunch of colorful flower accessories, like those resin or acrylic types, sat along the brim of her hat.

Rex stepped right up to her, and since he was a head taller, he stared down, ignoring personal boundaries.

"Uh, Rex…" Noah warned.

"I could have sworn I saw something move," Rex mumbled to himself.

Another slap came, but to his other cheek. Rex paid no mind to it, having spied one of the pink flowers wobbling like jelly, and it was then that it hit him.

No wonder they had trouble finding it, since it could transform itself and had been hiding itself by copying other physical objects!

"Ah-hah! I got you now!" he shouted and shot straight for it, closing two palms together, smashing the crown of the sunhat, earning a shrill scream from the woman and shocked shouts from his guys.

It was only when the EVO split itself, squeezing out through his fingers and jumping several feet into the air did the guys realize what was going on.

"After it!"

"Keep a close eye! It can change its shape and take up any form!" Rex warned.

The EVO next pretended to be a pinned accessory on woman's tote bag. Rex didn't miss it and snatched the whole bag, nanites charging outwards from his wrist to form a metal box around it.

"Thief! Help! Thief!" the woman screamed, and her friend swung her bag at Rex, connecting his jaw with a force as if her bag had been filled with gold bars.

"Give us back!"

"Offph!" Rex stumbled backwards from the impact, but luckily Noah was right behind, catching him from behind and steadying him.

To their horror, the pinkish blob phased out Rex's nanites cage like a phantom.

"Holy shit."

It pretended to be a pendant next, hanging on the necklace of a young woman, dangling low on her chest. Rex was so impatient and intent on catching the EVO that he just dived straight between her breast, ignoring Noah's warnings.

Her boyfriend connected Rex's jaw with his fist, displaying impressive karate style moves. Rex didn't even have time to defend himself, needing to quickly be on the move to chase after the swift, agile and sneaky little EVO. He could only get angrier and angrier at the devilish blob.

Nathan radioed back and gave quick updates to HQ, hoping either the Science or Tech department could give some advice. Nothing seemed to help, and the guys were left tripping over themselves trying to catch this troublesome EVO. Frustration climbed, evident on everyone's dark face as they got unfairly accused and hit by the surrounding shoppers who were clueless about the devil blob.

They chased it down the quadrangle, where it bounced atop a patio umbrella at the street corner. Without warning, it suddenly dropped right down into the glass of an unsuspecting teenage diner, blending into the soda drink.

The guys gasped in horror as she brought the glass to her lips.

Rex sped with a spark of booster at his feet, catching her wrist before she could chug down her drink.

He panted slightly.

"Girl, you have to give this to me."

She blinked a few times, looking bewildered, then suddenly squealed along with her two other companions.

"Oh my god it's _REX the nanite king!_ "

A pinkish fountain suddenly blew up in their faces, shooting upwards from her glass like a sugary water sprout from Willy Wonka Land. Rex staggered backward, coughing violently from his near drowning experience.

 _Ugh!_ And he was splashed everywhere with the thick gooey substance. There was no time to clean himself though.

When he looked up, he was taken back to find the EVO suddenly supersized in mass – or rather, volume – becoming a stream of liquid racing down the road in curved bounces like a slinky spring.

"C'mon Rex! Hurry up!"

They continued chasing it, turning another corner to a quiet street.

"Right, any ideas how to catch it, by the way?"

"None. But first, we have to find it. Damn it! It's hiding again."

"Can't be too hard to find, it's huge now. See any giant things in pink?

"Yea," Rex pointed at the pink beetle parked with a long line of cars, "You mean like that?" "Hell! Sure must be stupid if thought it could hide itself that way."

Rex smirked, almost crazed.

"Damn this thing has given me enough trouble."

Rex sped over, reaching it before the other guys. He decided to try something new, arranging his nanites and building new circuitries to create a new hybrid of weapon. Aiming his completed weaponized arm at it, Rex could almost taste victory.

" _Hasta la vista, baby,_ " Rex gloated and fired.

Unfortunately, it must either be his folly to attempt something new which he had never before, or pure bad luck, that shrapnel burst out from his weapon, one hitting the blue Volkswagen in front, eliciting a wail of pain, and the other puncturing the fire hydrant at the side, causing it to burst with an outpouring of tears into the EVO.

A pink wave rose like a tsunami, stretching two stories high, casting a foreboding shadow over the guys who watched in horror. It curved backwards slowly, inch by inch then suddenly crashed into the line of townhouses on the opposite side of the road.

 _Crap._

"Wait! That's it! It's sound!" Tio suddenly shouted, clapping his hands together, "Sound disturbs it! Especially if they're loud and high pitched! And the water – It increases its mass many fold!"

Rex nodded, catching on. People's screams, the car honk, animals barking – the EVO moves only at these sounds. And it multiplied in size after contact with liquid.

"Good thinking! Unfortunately, the frequency blaster is back at base," Nathan reminded them.

"That's okay, I have this," Tio fished out an old-school looking cassette player from the seventies, "I just need to do some quick mods to amplify it."

"Cool. I'll help," Noah said.

"Good. Bobo, you and I, we'll keep track of the EVO. Rex, you stay with them so you can race over with the gadget once they're done," Nathan suggested.

"Right!"

The EVO was crawling pretty quickly along the sides of the residential apartments, which climbed upwards in staggered heights. Nathan and Bobo kept reporting back on its location. When it neared the commercial sector, where the buildings were taller, Noah and Tio were done.

"Great!" Rex exclaimed, "Now hop on!"

He brought out his boogie pack and made a small box stand to drop down from it, allowing Tio and Noah to get on.

Rex zipped over quickly, seeing the giant EVO clear enough even from a far distance. It was now moving atop the roofs and looked almost comical, like a giant pudding, except that there was nothing cute about the situation.

He detected a tiny figure chasing behind the EVO and grinned when he realized it was Bobo. The monkey must have climbed up the sides of the building, it being easy for him of course.

"Now, play some music, Tio!" Rex shouted when they were nearing several yards, reaching Bobo.

An insane mix of a powerhouse Soprano with heavy metal background music blasted, sound deafening. The EVO was instantly affected, entire body compressed and vibrating violently, with uneven contours impressed onto its jelly form.

"Yes! You guys are geniuses! We did it!"

Their triumph was too early.

Slim streams of liquid flew towards them and pierced one of Rex's jet outlet like a powerful javelin.

"Shit!" Rex lost control and veered sideways, crashing onto the roof, but not before balling up his friends in a force-shield to protect them from impact. They got up quickly to continue the chase, but had to jump out of the way again from more onslaughts of flying spikes bursting out from its body.

In the chaos, Tio dropped the modified device and it nearly rolled off the building. Luckily, Bobo managed to save it in time.

"Good monkey! Now let's go!" Rex brought out his Slyder, which Bobo quickly got on.

"Go right ahead, we'll be right behind you!" Noah called after.

Rex and Bobo sped ahead, dodging the lethal spikes that hardened from its original jelly state. The giant EVO managed to keep moving, but became more frenzied as they neared, entire form turning into an urchin, a terrifying deadly ball of thousand spikes.

"Uh, guys, this doesn't seem to be helping," Rex complained a bit breathlessly, feeling heavy and weighed down. His joints felt a bit stiff – must be tired from the sharp maneuvers he had to do to avoid the javelin onslaught, which increased in intensity.

"Yea, I can see that. That should be its defenses retaliating."

"So, how should we stop it completely?"

"Try implanting the device into it. The sound wave should affect it from within," Tio suggested over radio comm.

"Right."

Rex sped, double time now, but overshot when the EVO suddenly dropped down through the gap between two blocks. Bobo chose that time to a crazy acrobatic stunt, jumping backwards after it and throwing down the device.

Unfortunately, he missed grabbing onto the edge of the roof.

" _Catch me_ Rex!"

"Bobo!" Rex screamed and zipped back, diving down the block with arms stretched out for Bobo.

However, something was wrong, Rex was veering off sideways, leg muscles trembling weakly in despair, not able to control the flight path of his Slyder. To his horror, Rex was carried off like a helpless leaf in the wind, fingers missing Bobo's by just an inch.

" _NoooOOOOooooo!_ " came Bobo's agonized screams, promptly cut off when he plummeted right into the center of the Jelly EVO, just two seconds after the device dropped in.

A giant fountain exploded outward, clear water gushing outwards as if the EVO was vomiting water. Rex managed to land himself safely down, several yards from them, just as the flood rushed over, soaking his pants up to mid-calf. The water quickly receded into the side drains and to his relief, Bobo was well and alive, just spluttering on the ground, with Nathan helping him by his side.

Rex hurried over, but his limbs were completely hardened with his Slyder, so he had to trollop from side to side awkwardly like those cheap, mass produced plastic green toy soldiers. When he was left another quarter ways to Bobo, Noah and Tio had come down to Bobo's side, then jogged over to Rex in concern.

"Rex! What happened to you?"

"I'm stuck. Like someone poured glue all over me."

Tio and Nathan exchanged looks.

"Must be the EVO's bodily fluids. Rex was doused in it earlier. Must have taken time to harden," Noah pointed out.

"Right, then the teenage girl earlier, she should be hardened too," Tio nodded in agreement, "We should get her."

"Before that, what should we do with this?"

They went back and looked at the A4 sized, thin, pink flat sheet lying on the ground.

"Should be down, right?" they looked at each other, abit uneasy.

Tio bent and gingerly picked it up.

"Yea, but to be safe, let's just wrap this thing round my baby," Tio said cautiously and rolled his retro music player with the flattened and motionlessness EVO.

"By the way, why'd you kept such an ancient relic?" Noah asked, curious.

"Well, it's a momento from my grand folks."

Nathan gave him a salute.

"Well, your grandparents have done us a great service today, so I thank them."

Tio beamed, then they discussed how they were going to split their roles, just as Rex finally reached them, panting as if he had ran miles.

"Bobo!" Rex cried in relief, "I'm so glad you're alright! I could hug you, except I can't."

Bobo glared at him with arms crossed.

"Look forward to my revenge," Bobo threatened, making Rex tremble a bit.

"No, Bobo, have mercy! It was an accident! I mean, look at me! I was hardening right as I made the dive, that's why –"

"Save your excuse!" Bobo barked.

Noah patted Rex's shoulder in pity.

"Look, just wait here, both of you. Tio will go look for the girl. Nathan and I will get the rover over. In the meantime, Bobo, you should get into a comfortable position before you harden."

Rex could have whined some more, but stopped when his attention was caught elsewhere.

Nathan had wrapped an arm around Noah's hips in typical, bad-wolf style. Noah's hands flew over, but instead of pulling it away like Rex thought he would, he rested his hand over Nathan's arms, much to Rex's ugly surprise. Rex struggled to hurry after them, but of course, it was futile in his state.

Hence, he could only watch in dismay whilst Nathan spoke into Noah's ear and they laughed, enjoying some secret joke. Rex felt agitation climbing, annoyed because he didn't like the idea of a promiscuous flirt like Nathan getting too close to Noah.

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 **END OF CHAPTER**


	31. Unintended Vice

*****SPECIAL NOTE: This chapter is dedicated to** Bramblerose4 **with many thanks!** ****

 **Chapter 31: Unintended Vice**

(The guys pull a quick stunt together in an effort to make Bobo feel better. One thing led to another…. and suddenly, an unwanted secret unravels?!…)

* * *

Rex felt extremely bad for Bobo. Because when they got back to Providence HQ, the Science department was able to de-harden both Rex and the teenage girl by spraying some chemical over them. For Bobo, on the other hand, only his face was de-hardened, the rest of him needing a haircut because the fur was too thick for the chemical to penetrate and wash the jelly EVO's residue.

Hence, Rex had taken it upon himself to give Bobo a private haircut in their bedroom, to save his buddy from the humiliation of anyone else watching.

"My beautiful fur," Bobo pined, staring forlorn at the chucks of fur littering the floor, "*And it took so long to grow to a respectable length too. It was too short lived."

"Oh don't worry Bobo, I'm just cutting only about half the length! You still look a thousand times more handsome than the last time!" Rex consoled whilst he carefully cut Bobo's fur with nanite-strengthened scissors.

Bobo gave him a death glare.

"How dare you remind me of my dark, embarrassing past!" Bobo snarled.

"First, Caesar, now you –what have I done to the Salazar brothers to deserve such cruelty?"

Noah suddenly entered and gave Bobo a comforting pat on his shoulder.

"Don't fret, Bobo, I'm here to help you punish him."

"What?" Rex became aghast, "Two against one?"

"Don't fret, it's not that scary," Noah assured and fished out a razor.

Rex gave him a baffled look.

"I don't have a goatee."

"This is for your legs," Noah clarified, and Rex's eyes went wide.

"Are you freakin' kidding me? No way!" Rex opposed.

"Rex," Noah began with a criticizing tone, "Bobo, you and I – are we not _sworn brothers?_ "

"Yea…"

"Aren't brothers _supposed_ to go through thick and thin together?"

"…yea."

"Then how you could let Bobo suffer through this humiliation _alone?_ "

Rex gave a heavy sigh, defeated.

" _Alright_ , fine, but I don't know how to do this."

"No worries, just copy me."

Then Noah demonstrated, stripping off his standard issue black pants and started shaving, starting from his ankles all the way up to the thighs under his short boxers. His already fair skin looked whiter and baby soft. _So soft_ , that Rex had to fight the urge to touch him.

"Wow, you know, this feels not bad," Noah admired his own work, feeling his own legs in a satisfied manner.

"Uh, aren't you enjoying this too much?" Rex asked incredulously, brain pounding, oddly uncomfortable with the sight.

"Yea, but only because I didn't know it feels so… _light and airy!_ It's like velvet kissing my skin!" Noah exclaimed, almost too fervently as if he was in a commercial, "Seriously, I know why chicks dig this now, almost feels kinda sexy!"

Noah propped his feet up on a stool.

"Just look at this? Sexy, eh?"

Rex was too giddy to reply. Noah was enthusiastic and taking this as a joke, but Rex was seriously trying to fight to look away, yet couldn't, enamored with such an enticing visage and feeling guilty over it.

Bobo gave an evil laugh at that point, and answered on Rex's behalf.

"Of course he thinks you're sexy, if he didn't, he wouldn't have had that *wet dream about you at that club."

Rex was horrified, staring at Bobo with his jaw hanging open, unable to believe that Bobo just let out his embarrassing secret.

" _Bobo!_ "

Bobo just smiled evilly, eyes glinting.

Rex turned his head mechanically to face Noah, who stared back with eyes large and questioning. His cheeks were starting to redden then Bobo laughed aloud.

"Oh man, look at the two of you! Your faces are red like a Baboon's butt!"

Noah paid Bobo no mind. He just softly asked.

"Really? When?"

Rex didn't get the chance to reply as the door burst open again and in came Nathan with a bunch of other guys from Delta.

"What? What the hell are you guys doing here?" Bobo was in outrage, glaring at all of them, grumpy mood returning.

"How _dare_ you barge in the middle of such a sacred ritual? Out! OUT!"

"Hey ya Bobo, calm down, we're just here to give you our moral support!" Nathan announced as he gave Bobo a small hug.

Bobo bared his teeth at him.

"Ooh, don't need it? Well I can see why, that buzz cut is really looking good!"

Bobo obviously didn't buy their goodwill.

"I'll hoax you," he spat.

"No serious! You're looking like a handsome monkey monk!" Mathew pointed with two 'sevens' he made with this index and thumb like those cheesy commercials.

"I'll hoax you too."

The guys erupted into teasing and laughing around a grumpy Bobo, until Tio noticed Noah's hairless leg.

"Holy shit! Noah, did you just shave your leg?"

"Yup, as will all of you here!" Noah informed, wearing a scary smile.

Matthew, Tio and the rest of them, except for Nathan, gave baffled looks.

"What?" Matthew shot a pointed look at Nathan, "So that's why you got us here?"

Nathan smiled playfully.

"Of course," he confirmed in a matter-of-fact voice, "Noah and I had planned this."

"Right, and what makes you think we'll go through with this nonsense?"

"I believe it's the mandate of 'one for all, and all for one,'" Cody answered, earning an aghast stare from Matthew.

"What? Cody? Were you in on this too without telling me? How could you betray me?" Matthew gave a mock-tortured cry.

Cody rolled his eyes.

"C'mon, let's just be a man and get on with this!"

Nathan gave an exaggerated bow to Bobo.

"For your viewing pleasure, Bobo, hope this satisfies you."

Bobo grinned manically.

"You know, now that Rex is kicked off my 'best friend' spot, you can have it."

"Bobo! You're so heartless!" Rex cried.

Noah laughed at the comedic play happening before him, then held up the bunch of wax stripes and razors he had brought along.

"Alright guys, let's get shaving."

Nearly twenty minutes later, screeching howls erupted from within the room, cries of pain and laughter merged together such that it sounded like madness had descended. Holiday was initially heading towards Rex's room, concerned that the hair cut was taking such a long time, when she heard those screams that sounded like the devil possessing someone.

She ran the rest of the way as fast as she could manage with her pregnant belly, down the corridor and burst into the room.

"My goodness! What is happening here?"

Her worried look gave way to confusion whilst she looked over all of them. Without another word, she disappeared, then returned in another few minutes with a DSLR in hand.

"Alright boys, I don't know what's going on here, but shall we immortalize this moment?" she asked, wearing the cheekiest smile Rex had ever seen.

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The whole of Providence basically had a hoot, laughing like a riot at the hairless leg parade that Delta and Rex gave. Of course it was shit embarrassing, but Bobo was so thoroughly enjoying their mortifying display, that none of the guys minded. It was a great distraction to detract the others from Bobo's new haircut, since the EVO monkey was particularly sensitive about his fur since that awful incident.

The guys carried their jovial mood to drinking way into the night in Delta's common lounge. They had a blast, drinking and chatting away, except for Rex, who got highly disturbed seeing Noah act so flirty with every single guy when he got drunk.

It surprised him, since he'd never seen Noah when he was so drunk till this point before. Noah took turns drinking from everyone's bottle of beer and sat on everyone's lap, rating them on who was the most comfy couch.

Exactly how much did Noah drink to become this _senseless_ , flirty demon incarnate? How could they be best friends for about eight years, and Rex not seen this side of Noah? But then again, Noah had done a perfect job hiding his sexuality from Rex since his college days.

Feeling heat pool within his belly like a devilish imp was born inside and making a mad thrashing, Rex thought this must be what fathers felt like marrying off their daughters. Either that, or he himself, had one bottle too many to drink for there was a burning sensation in a trail from his belly up his esophagus, to his pharynx.

In any case, thank god no one here was keen on marrying Noah – be damned if that happened. And luckily, no one seemed interested in taking advantage of the seductive Noah, who has all the shamelessness and vulnerability of a drunkard. None of the guys pawed Noah – lucky for them, or Rex was quite sure he might give a few sprained arms – they merely either laughed in boisterous manners, making mock kissy faces and catcalls and looking very amused, or they pretended to gag and quite jumpily relinquished Noah to the next guy as soon as they could.

Rex did as much damage control as he could, struggling to keep Noah under control. He kept a hand on Noah's wrist, but it was challenging since his friend demonstrated abilities like an agile and nimble feline, twisting over and under in an almost contortionist fashion, managing to slip from Rex's grasp. All the while, Noah had a pair of twinkling eyes that were completely unfamiliar to Rex, who recognized a mischievous gaze when he saw one, but didn't know Noah was capable of it. The dizzying, unusual and almost possessed side of Noah was highly disorientating, and was likely the reason why Rex found it so trying to grab a steady hold onto his friend.

On top of that, he was also booed every now and then by the other guys if he tried too forcefully to keep Noah locked down cross legged on the floor. 'Party pooper' – they cried, 'let him loose' – the chorus ran – apparently they weren't as bothered by Noah's near-debauchery as Rex was.

Chaos was running high under Rex's skin, blood vessels thrumming from the heavy dose of alcohol in his blood, and from trying to figure out the enigma that Noah had become. It was clear Noah was heavily drunk, elsewise he wouldn't act this way, especially not in front of the rest of his Delta mates, yet whenever their eyes met, Rex felt this sure sense of clarity boring into him, gaze intense and blazing, so much so that Rex felt an odd sense of trepidation run down between his shoulder blades like a shiver for countless times that night.

The sides of his head pounded harder as the night wore on, and trying to fight with a slippery, sensual incarnate was tiring him out more than the alcohol could knock him out. And then when they tripped and ended up with Noah atop him, that flushed face and glazed over eyes uncomfortably reminded Rex too much of that *sordid wet dream he had, that Rex finally gave up entirely and simply steered clear from Noah.

That fiery pool in his belly never waned though, instead, only grew hotter as Rex did the only thing he could as a self-tantrum to keep him fixated on something rather than going over to try to control Noah – he drank _more_ beer. All the while, staring with furrowed eyes at how he was going to tell Noah the morning after that he was banned from ever drinking again. Rex couldn't help thinking that it was lucky that they were with their Delta gang – he had an irrefutable doubt that if they were at Staizer, Noah might have been fucked by a room full of gays by then.

Rex felt a shudder pass through him on that thought and mentally slapped himself. God forbid it to ever happen… though, who was to say that _hadn't_ happened? He coughed violently in between big gulps of his beer, choking on the bitter, fiery liquid and the satanical propositions. He knew it wasn't his place to question Noah on things like that, so he hadn't, out of great respect and love for his best friend's privacy. But just because he knew he shouldn't ask, didn't stop the questions from surfacing his mind every now and then.

Especially ever since *Ray, and hearing how Noah had went to bed with the asshole. How many other assholes – no, rather guys, have Noah slept with? Rex finally felt the ache along his jaw from clenching his teeth for the umpteen time that night as he pondered over these nagging questions. It seemed so unfair that Rex would announce his one night stands while Noah had kept his all secrets. Not that Rex had many, since Circe was his girlfriend for a couple of years and then after that, he'd popped in and out of clubs once in a blue moon, bedding only a few girls.

It was vexing really, why he was even so bothered with Noah's sex life. Just as vexing as it was to understand how sex between two guys could even feel good. Rex wasn't so naïve as to not know how two guys did it, but it was kinda eating him in a curiously maddening way as to which position Noah took. Whichever it was, Rex was quite sure Noah's having the shorter end of the stick.

But well, whatever, Noah's sex life was none of his business. Frankly, if only he could get the grouchy imp inside his stomach to simmer down. He has no clue why he was pissing so much when this should be a happy night. No one seemed to notice his sour mood though, all too intoxicated to notice.

And also, too drunk to stay up, and keep a sound picture. They were an assortment of embarrassing and puzzling photos in a picture book themselves, having overcome by slurred speeches, unsteady bodies and comical loss of facial control. Eventually, one by one, the guys retired to their own rooms, having had enough to drink. The rowdy slurs and embarrassing displays gradually lessened as the night wore on, becoming quieter and less boisterous.

Rex was the most sober one amongst them, having drank the least. He thought he drank a lot, but he might have stopped without noticing when the hot pit made his belly boil so much he couldn't down another bottle. But he wasn't the only one who was miraculously somewhat sober in the drink fest.

When Matthew and Cody left, right after the door closed behind them, Nathan made a long wolf whistle and made a barrel with one hand, insinuation as clear as his gaze that was as sharp and focused as a hawk.

Rex flushed, face heated up instantly, so hot it felt like the air steamed around him – or it could be the alcohol that made his skin already burning. He instantly remembered Matthew's recent confession on how he and Cody wanked each other off like it was the most normal thing for buddies to do.

"Hmm… really? The two of them?" Noah, surprisingly, despite being stoned, seemed aware enough to get Nathan's meaning.

"Yea, it's fun time, you know how it is," a smile pulled at Nathan's lips, sounding off alarm bells in Rex's head.

"In fact, we could have _our_ fun time too, if you want," Nathan continued suggestively and scooted over to Noah, leaning over his back, wrapping his arms over Noah's, drawing out just the tiniest shiver that sent Rex's head reeling.

Rex didn't need to see Nathan continue his debauchery any further – he was up that instant, but he had a few too much to drink, and was unsteady on his feet, falling back onto one knee.

"Hey, _paws off_ , Nathan," Rex warned, voice coming out unsurprisingly scratchy against beer-burnt throat.

"Heh, Are you jealous? You can join too, if you want," Nathan challenged, a dangerous glint in his eye.

" _What?_ Are you crazy?!" Rex balked at Nathan's insane suggestions, then eyed them precariously as he realized that the three of them were the only ones left in the room.

"What's crazy is you're not helping yourself to this inviting meal," Nathan smiled in a haughty manner, and licked the shell of Noah's ear, eliciting the tiniest of gasps.

Heat climbed over Rex's head, from a combination of having too many drinks and from the agitation of having to deal with Nathan. He scuttled over to them and attempted to pull Noah up, but Nathan wrapped both arms round Noah's torso, keeping him down.

Noah gasped in weak protest, looking in a state of disorientation, yet panting with eyes that were large and _begging_ , burrowing into Rex, plummeting his head and causing his temples to throb wildly.

 _This is so not happening…_ It was ghastly to see his friend begging wantonly – not so much because he hasn't seen it before, because he had, during their gung-ho, impromptu *undercover stint at Staizer – but because before, Noah was a hundred percent conscious and aware and was acting out of necessity. Now however, all of Noah's expressions and actions were just alcohol talking, and it was dangerous, _so, so dangerous_.

" _Let him go!_ " Rex snarled.

"I believe that's for him to decide, right?"

Nathan's hand dived into Noah's shirt, grabbing a nipple, causing Noah to mew and buckle, arching forwards into Rex's chest since Noah was sandwiched between them. Rex felt like fire licked him – oh no, more like the hells of fire devouring his entirely, making him unable to breathe.

" _More!_ " Noah cried, biting his finger.

Shocked and gripped with an emotion Rex could not name, he was frozen in place. He could hardly believe it, yet Noah was a face of pleading and lust, unlike anything Rex had seen before, holding out an invitation to descend into a drunken, sordid fest of skin against skin and perhaps much more that Rex didn't have the mental capacity to imagine. And hell, Rex was _horny_ as hell.

"See, didn't Noah clearly want some tumble?" Nathan crooked a brow, devilish grin widening.

But Rex was no longer paying attention to Nathan. Noah had his full attention, and every recollection of them kissing in awkward or clumsy or joking situations flashed in his mind, and though it should be a humorous recount, it became teasing, like those flitting pecks were supposed to be a prelude to a deeper, more savory kiss. And it didn't help that a glistening thread of saliva escaped one corner of Noah's mouth, dribbling down his pale, trembling chin.

All at once, Rex was back on the sandy beach of *Cabo Luna, with the darkness and chilly air bracing their bodies and Noah's skin coated in the bluish light of the moon. Noah was an enchanting, haunting figure in his recollections, his mouth a burning, wet delight. Rex could almost remember the feel of Noah's saliva coating his lips as their lips crashed together in Noah's sudden, dire need for comfort. It was almost the same now as it was then – except that this Noah, looked in dire need for a mad mouth fuck as if to release his pent up sexual urges.

On hindsight, that was probably what was driving Noah so recklessly in his drunk stupor, since Noah's been cooped up here for months since his Basic and further still, after his induction into official missions. But in comparison, Rex arguably wasn't as drunk as his buddy, so the sensible part of him was struggling hard to retain self-control of the other delirious half of him that ached to taste Noah's wet and agape lips.

" _Rex!_ " the begging whimper that escaped Noah's lips hit Rex like a force that blew him away more than he could understand, wearing down his resistance. The back of his throat swelled with throbbing like his heart had galloped upwards. His chest was pounding so hard, Rex felt like his lungs were smashed flat within his rib cage before inflating to the point of bursting.

Their eyes locked like an electric current leaping off opposite ends of an electromagnetic set up. Rex searched Noah's eyes, seeing all lust, which both puzzled and terrified Rex at the same time. Noah never looked at Rex like that before, with clear wanton intent, but now that he did, it was damningly perplexing because he never saw himself in a position that could attract Noah, even when he knew Noah liked guys. The bigger question was, was Noah horny to Rex because _he was male_ , or because _it was Rex?_

In any case, the question seemed redundant because Rex knew if beer was never in the mix, he wouldn't be tested with a situation like this. The fire in his belly dropped downwards, spreading south, whipping to life the flames of his manhood, which only served to make him ashamed and angry. His cock was stirring to life, straining against his pants since being fed with such an invigorating visage – nevermind that Noah was wholly male and Rex was a hundred percent sure that he was straight, the last time he checked. Rex was lenient enough on himself to accept Noan's sexual attractiveness, particularly since Rex was kinda drunk anyway. What he was appalled by, was how he could react to his best friend like some kind of mindless, carnal beast.

Rex hadn't even realized that he was shaking till he saw his palms rise up to Noah's cheek. Noah issued a strangled sort of mew, like a starved pet finally rewarded its master's love, leaning his smooth cheek into Rex's feverish palms.

It was like fire licking his hand, like dousing his hand inside an inferno.

God, this was _so wrong_ , Noah was drunk and probably heedless of his reactions. A sober Noah wouldn't have allowed something like this, _would he_? Rex was suddenly doubtful again, and those damning, intrusive and awkward questions rambled itself in his mind like a bull running lose.

There was so much about Noah's sexual life that he didn't know. He knew Noah had his share of flings, but didn't know much else about how often he did, or how many one night stands he has had, nor even how Noah would be like when he flirted with guys.

"Doesn't feel bad, does it?" Nathan murmured against Noah's nape after what felt like eons of Rex trudging the weary uphill climb from friend to cross boundary.

Rex found no words to reply, instead, watched as Nathan flicked a long, snaking tongue over the side of Noah's jugular vein.

" _More!_ " Noah cried again, softer this time, almost whimpering, trembling fingers clutching Rex's tee.

Nathan took it as a request to bite down on Noah's neck like a predator, eliciting a sharp gasp that rolled into a loud moan.

Rex was inclined to devour Noah's opened mouth right there and then and suck his breath, and drink his saliva. But somehow, that very same moan had broken the spell.

Rex _couldn't_ – couldn't cave into that horny side of him that wanted to sink into the depths of depravity into the folds of Noah's sexy, arching limbs. Not when the one egging Noah on, and pushing all his horny buttons was a combination of too much alcohol, and a very, satanic Nathan. It suddenly came to his mind that an unfettered threesome would be what this depravity would lead him to, and Rex was as sure as hell he wasn't into that. Rex felt this other emotion quickly well up inside, nameless. All he knew was that it tasted bitter, and hot, like bad beer burning down his throat. Making him angry. So ignoring his god damn hard cock, he shoved Nathan backwards away from Noah's shoulders.

"You can't!" Rex yelled, " _Don't take advantage_ of him just because he's _drunk_!"

Nathan relinquished his hold on Noah and suddenly laughed, continuing his haughty challenge.

"But it's precisely _because_ he's drunk, that he can afford to let loose, isn't it?" Nathan licked his lips slowly, eyes never leaving Rex's face. "And as I recall," a devilish glint came to Nathan's eye, " _You_ were equally drunk and horny a long time back, when _I helped you get off,_ remember?"

Hell might as well have rained on Rex.

He could not be more horrified that the seedy, unspoken past that he had wanted to forget, was revealed, bringing fresh emotions of mortification. Yea, sure that happened, but it was a completely exceptional and one-off case that had Rex damningly regretting it a thousand times over.

Returning his gaze to Noah, Rex found Noah was suddenly staring at him with startling clear eyes, gaze focused and unwavering. It made his belly queasy. And his lungs to suddenly stop intake of air and pause mid-way of its inflation as if he was petrified and turned to stone.

Before Rex could say anything else, a punch flew into his face, courtesy of Noah.

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED…**

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 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

 ***"And it took so long to grow to a respectable length too. It was too short lived.":** Chapter 15 Genius Distractions –

Bobo pulled a huge prank on Caesar, which resulted in the Doctor punishing him by sending him on errands into hazardous, unventured jungles. He ended up having to burn and shave off all his fur to rid himself of the million leeches he'd caught. It'd been a decent number of weeks since then, enough for his fur to grow a bit.

 ***undercover stint at Staizer /wet dream :** Chapter 11 Keeping in role or keeping it real –

Coach, Gabe's and Michael's dad, was buying illegal nanite enchanced patches. So the twins asked Rex and Noah help get their dad out of it. Hence, Rex and Noah went undercover at a Gays' club, Staizer, in a bit to bust the illegal trading of nanites-enchanced patches. In the midst of their survey, Rex sees Noah's sexy side for the first time, learns about the secret of Noah's sexuality, and has a wet dream about his best friend for the first time.

 ***Ray/ Cabo Luna:** Chapter 14 homestay –

Rex stays over Noah's house for the weekend, the first in a long time. They ran into Ray, a perverted guy into S&M and robot play whom Noah had the misfortune of having a tryst with, long time back. Noah wants nothing more to do with Ray, but he was blackmailed into meeting with him, or else photos of their incident would be revealed to Rex. Having no choice, Noah took the chance while Rex was bathing, to secretly go out, but accidently drops his phone in the driveway in his bid to hurry off. Rex recovers Noah's phone and the message Ray sent, and angrily zips off to find them before monstrous damage can be done. After a short fight with Ray's robot that he had illegally weaponized, Rex calls for Providence to clean up and takes Noah away to Cabo Luna, hoping the tranquility of the place would heal Noah's traumatized and frightened nerves. Noah ended up suddenly kissing him seriously, deeper than they ever had before. Rex chalked it up as Noah needing comfort, so tries not to read any further into it.


	32. Shaky Relations

**Chapter 32: Shaky Relations**

(Things are not going well between our favourite boys! _*Cries*_ What is going to happen?)

* * *

Rex was roasting in hell. He must be, because he felt angry every day, angry that Noah punched him out of jealously on hearing how Nathan had once given him a hand job. At the same time, Rex despaired over it.

And damn how it hurt – not the punch, that healed within a minute – but the memory, it replayed itself over and over in Rex's head like bad episodes of a soap drama.

So it was clear then, that Noah was crushing on Nathan. But if that were the case, why was Noah avoiding not just Rex, but Nathan too? Instead, he was suddenly chummy with Cody the last few days.

He thought he _knew_ his best friend. Now he knows, though he had known Noah for years, he didn't know Noah inside out as well as he thought he did. Hell, he didn't even have the slightest clue that Noah was gay, until he sort of had to reveal himself because of a mission. In other words, if that undercover stint at Staizer never happened, then Rex might never have known about Noah's secret. Same as what happened in the early days, when Noah made a *slip up in panic over getting stuck in the Pet Zoo with Beverly's release, back when she was still this monstrous spider like EVO. If push never come to shove, the secret might have been carried to Noah's grave.

Though Noah had differing reasoning to justify himself for each circumstance, it underlined the crux of the matter – that Noah couldn't trust Rex completely – at least not enough to believe their friendship could weather whatever tumultuous truths may hit them.

Was it that easy to think that Rex would let things that could hardly count as significant against the tide of their friendship, to ruin their history and connection? Was it so hard to believe that Rex was that type of flaky friend?

It hardly counted as fair, and it hurt a lot, since when it comes to Rex, he trusted Noah two hundred percent. There was nothing that Noah didn't know about him, that Rex didn't tell. Even Providence business, was all out and open news to Noah. Rex never hid anything from his buddy, even things he was afraid of telling others, so why was he not given the same amount of trust in return?

Rex hated wondering if he was lacking in some way, or hadn't done enough to earn Noah's equal resolution that their friendship was stronger than any hell could break. He also especially hated blowing things out of proportion into a melodrama from hell.

Yet he couldn't stop all these uncertainties from crawling to the forefront of his mind. There were just too many things were agonizing Rex. Too many questions. And the man who is the cause of it refused to talk to Rex properly. Instead, he was plastered shoulder to shoulder with Cody instead.

Things just didn't add up. To get one thing clear, Rex went up to Matthew, asking him about Noah and Cody, if there was in the smallest chance of the most improbable degree, that they could suddenly be dating.

"Nah, that's impossible! There's just no way they're _pairing up_!" Matthew immediately refuted.

"Right, then you have any idea why they're suddenly joined at the hip?"

Matthew gave him an accusing stare.

"Hey, buddy, I thought you of all people should know. I mean, Noah went to him _because of you_."

Rex felt his heart sink.

"You heard that from Cody? What did Noah say?"

Matthew shrugged.

"Sorry, I don't know the details, but look, if you can make a guy like Noah pissed off to this extent _, doesn't matter whose fault it is_ , you better swallow your own balls and get down with the apology, man."

Rex's lips stretched thin.

"Right, thanks for the advice."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex finally caught Noah by the arm along the corridor, determined not to shrink or retreat from his icy glare. He had enough of going through a week of hell – he wasn't going to remain inside the boiling pits for another.

"What? I'm busy," Noah shot and moved along. His body was tensed like he was ready for a fight, which made Rex more upset. Since when did Rex's presence elicit such an unwelcome response from his best friend?

Rex felt clobbered by the war happening between them the whole week. They never fought like this before. Sure, they squabbled and taunted each other a lot, and were super competitive, but any jibes and disagreements they had were mild and all within a comfortable understanding that it could never harm their friendship. The only one time when Rex felt like hell was between them, was when he discovered Noah joined Providence as an undercover spy to watch over him. But at that time, Rex was the only angry at Noah, not the other way round, and despite Rex's initial brusque reactions, he cooled quickly, forgiving Noah wholeheartedly when he realized Noah was true and sincere, and that he couldn't imagine life without a witty, spunky, and sometimes infuriating, dare devil blonde around.

Rex pulled him back hard, fighting to keep his face from looking pissed, which was tough, considering how Noah was already pushing all his buttons with his lack of wanting to clear the air. Rex absolutely hated it, and was appalled, since Noah was never the type to shrink from talking properly when they had to dish out.

Rex took a quick breath to get himself started, keeping his tones level.

"Listen, I'm sorry, whatever happened in the past, stays in the past. I didn't know you're into Nathan. And now that I know…" Rex felt his jaw and throat tighten considerably, till his words were suddenly lodged in his throat and he had to make an effort to force them out, " _I won't_ get in your way again."

Noah's face turned from annoyance to puzzlement.

"Huh? But you're the one crushing on him, aren't you?" Noah's tone however, remained hard.

"What? That's insane!" Rex cried, "Whatever made you say that?"

"Well, it's obvious isn't it? You got _jealous_ every time Nathan flirted with me and always tried to separate us!"

"That's only because I was concerned for you! I don't want my buddy taken advantage of. And besides, _you're_ the one letting him touch you. Doesn't this mean that _you like him_?"

"No. There's nothing between me and that flirt."

"But he has his arms all over you – like _all the time_!" Rex was exasperated.

"I could say the same for you! You don't seem to mind it when he hangs all over you!"

"That's crazy, I so do not let him do that," Rex refuted, crossing his arms.

Noah rolled his eyes and shot back. Their loud arguing continued back and forth, none backing down, and none bothering to soften their voices. The other Providence staff wisely took another direction, quietly giving them space and privacy, even if at that point, the two of them were so pissed that they didn't care if anyone was around.

Rex felt the veins in his forehead throb so hard and painful that he thought it might burst. His head would surely explode next. Because Noah sure was suggesting absolutely insane things that had zero grounds.

"I already said, I'm. Not. Into. Nathan," Rex seethed, spitting out word by word.

"Yea, you say that, then let him touch your dick." Sarcasm dripped right off Noah's unrelenting tongue.

Rex gave a breathy sigh of agony before trying to explain the unfortunate, regretful incident that was caused by alcohol overdose and one super zonked out Rex. He wasn't even sure how that all happened, his memory rather fuzzy due to high intoxication.

It was just one of those fuck-up nights, some time after his break up with Circe, that he was miserable and aching for his ex-girl. It hadn't been easy, trying to get over his first love. Nathan had offered a consoling arm and three dozen beers after a mission together, which somehow also included porn flicks Rex had initially no idea Nathan brought over to his room. The fiendish combination of emptying all the alcohol and running through three porn flicks consecutively, was what gave Rex his erection from hell. Which led him to be the target of Nathan's predation. Rex fought against him, of course – he definitely remembered slurring a shout of protest and slapping Nathan's hand away. But he was already high on the edge, so he came as soon and as little as Nathan's fleeting touch on his groin. And Rex still had his pants on at that point – fully dressed and everything – so it wasn't like Nathan had really touched his dick.

Fuck the damn bastard for not putting his words properly, painting one horribly misconstrued picture of what really happened. And unfortunately, it looks like Noah wasn't buying Rex's explanations, which vexed him further.

He hated this, hated that merciless look of scorn and resentment coating Noah's face that looked as alien as a creature from outer space. He thought he knew Noah well enough to know every expression and his thoughts and emotions behind them. Yet here, facing him now, nothing was recognizable. Not the downward curve of Noah's severe lips, the agitated twitching of an eyelid, or the unforgiving downward furrow of his fine brows.

Rex was perplexed and clueless how to respond to this side of Noah and it frightened him, so much so that a tremor ran down his arm from the left of his chest, heart clenching in so much pain that it was akin to having a heart attack. His fingers trembled, he realized, not just from fear, but from fighting the desperate urge to reach up to brush against Noah's hardhearted brows and comb them upwards gently to a more gracious curve, and to trace his wrathful-twisted lips and ease them into a softer line.

If this were some other argument, at some other time, Rex no doubt would have made no second thoughts to doing that, and would have thought nothing of it, but right now, something heavy was burgeoning inside his chest that weighed his limbs down a ton, impeding him from touching his friend, as if such dear, innocent touches was encroaching into some unwanted territory that screamed danger at the back of Rex's mind.

"Alright, you don't believe me? Fine, suit yourself, you jealous prick. Just don't say I didn't tell you, I'm not into him. So if you want him, _you_ can have him."

Once the sentence dropped, half of him cursed himself for his handicap speech said in spite, knowing he made it worst.

" _I already told you_ , I'm not tripping over him," Noah seethed through clenched teeth.

"Then why the hell are you so mad at me for?" Rex yelled.

Noah shut his mouth at that point, jaws tight and grinding slightly from side to side. He slapped a palm on his forehead and leaned back against the wall, sighing deeply.

 _"_ _This isn't going anywhere,"_ Noah spat softly, staring at the floor.

Shaking slightly, Rex thought better against a retort, shutting his mouth. He stuffed his hands into his pocket and leaned on the opposite side, glaring at his shoes. It was pointless going round in circles arguing about _'Nathan this or that.'_ They should cool off for a while but Rex didn't want to just walk off, and it seemed like Noah didn't either.

This was unreal. And frightening – Rex's fingers never stopped shaking. It has now spread to his legs, as if his tendons all melted into a hot mesh, making his legs tremble against his own weight. How was it that the two of them ran into three-degree turn of emotions in rapid succession, within the span of one night? First, they were cheery and high as the bestest of friends, then as the night wore on, they became as hard as rocks down south and horny for a mad romp then suddenly, they became as mad as hell at each other. Worst still, even now, they remained equally hard headed with each other.

Rex could see himself incensed from all directions, jumping at Noah's every word, agitated that Noah was acting like a stubborn, jealous prick. It was crazy for Noah to even suggest that Rex crushed on Nathan when between the three of them, Rex was the only one who wasn't interested in guys.

Their chests continued rising and falling heavily in mirroring fashions, both still carrying a chest full of angry, hot air, even if silence stretched between them, until Noah gave a deep, shaky breath that Rex could almost feel, sinking in the space between them in that cramped corridor.

"Look, I, it's _not that_ – with Nathan, I mean, it's –" Noah tried again, more calmly and softer this time, fumbling a bit, before taking another deep breath, "Look, I'm _not_ exactly crazy over him, but it doesn't mean I don't enjoy the attention. I mean, Nathan's really amazing, despite his promiscuous repertoire."

"Right, so you _do_ like him a little, don't you?" Rex repeated, prodding for a firm answer, a definite reason why Noah was overcome with the act to punch him.

No answer.

Frustration was nearly at Rex's peak. His head could blow at any second. Seriously, why was Noah so stubborn to admit it? If Noah felt nothing for Nathan, then why the hell was Rex punched? He got punched for nothing! – hell that made him more pissed.

"I mean, you did _get kinda jealous_ , right? That's why you punched me that night," Rex pointed out, trying to get Noah to the root of the matter and confirm it.

"Oh, _did I?_ " Noah's tone was cutting, crooking an angry brow, "I must have been so drunk _._ It's _all fuzzy_ in my head," Noah outright lied.

Rex looked up and stared at Noah's icy cool gaze, aghast that Noah didn't even try to act like he was really ignorant.

Rex felt the molten lava churning inside his chest for the past week weigh down thrice as heavily, sinking down into his stomach and causing a gut-wrenching pain.

"Yea, _guess you were_ , never mind then. _Forget_ I said anything," Rex continued steely, knowing the conversation was getting them nowhere.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex, still tormented, went to the next best shrink in Providence – Holiday.

Lying on the bio-bed, hands laced together over his belly, Rex told her everything – well, not everything per say, but as much as he could, without mentioning any names. He simply labeled themselves as guy A –for Noah, B –for Nathan and C –for himself.

"How could A and B _get together_ , without actually _being together_? Know what I mean?"

"Well, there's such a thing as 'friends with benefits,'" Holiday answered, "Besides, you're forgetting about guy C, who was punched. It's obvious he's the one who is most jealous here."

"What?! That's impossible!" Rex shouted, shooting up from the bed and staring at Holiday.

"I'm just stating the obvious."

"But I already told you, guy C is _not_ into guys."

"Not other guys, but maybe just into either guy A or B."

"… _Impossible_. I just said Guy C is _straight_."

"Why not?" she raised her brows, and continued in the most matter-of-fact-tone, "If you look at it from a 'friends with benefits' perspective, it is still possible for a man to become erect, if stimulated by eroticism or physical ministrations of sufficient levels, regardless of the nature or gender of the subject causing the erection. And perhaps, guy C is jealous about the level of intimacy that guy A and B has together."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Delta and Foxtrot hiked the jungles and decrepit castle of Abysus, sent here to investigate unusual nanite readings detected by the Science team. A dark question hung heavily over them – _does this have anything to do with Van Kleiss?_

The old stomping ground of their nemesis had wild, sprawling growth climbing over the half crumbled stone fortress. It brought back oceans of dark memories, of a time where Providence and Rex had countless battles against *The Pack. The building was more pitiful and ancient looking than before, like an ancient tomb where the stench of death and destruction still clung to the surrounding air and its walls.

Providence split to cover more ground, and when Jackson paired Rex up with Noah, Rex became hesitant.

"Uh, I'd like to have an additional member, please."

Jackson gave a surprised look, but Kenwyn volunteered herself in the mix. Noah just shot Rex a frown, but didn't say anything.

As soon as the teams dispersed and Noah was more ahead and out of earshot, Kenwyn nudged Rex with her elbow.

"So, things are getting rocky between you two, huh?"

"Is it that obvious?" Rex gave a sad smile.

"It is if you're avoiding being alone with him. What's your argument?"

"Actually, I don't really know anymore."

The two of them haven't argued since that day at the corridor, but they hadn't exactly talked to each other either. It made Rex feel restless, plagued with this anxiety that he was losing his best friend, but he didn't know what to do to salvage it. He should probably talk to him again, but his mind was so messed up with other things that Rex couldn't put his thoughts together properly.

Kenwyn gave a small sigh of pity, and didn't ask further. The three of them scouted the area cautiously, in silence, investigating the underground passageways. It was dark, so they switched on the torches attached on their shoulders, illuminating the desolate corridors. There were pockmarks all over the ground and the curved arch of the ceiling and wall, remnants of the various battles it had witnessed.

Hitting a fork, Kenwyn volunteered to go down one corridor alone.

"Wait! _Kenwyn!"_ Rex hissed in dismay, not wanting to be alone with Noah.

"Don't worry, you and Noah can handle this together."

The lieutenant just crooked a brow and went her way, leaving Rex and Noah to go down the dark path in awkward silence. They turned into a stretch that had a narrow line of gap along the upper wall, through which afternoon light spilled in scattered rays, likely broken up by the flora and vines that crept into the slit from the outside.

Rex paused, suddenly hearing something.

"Must be a compound above this tunnel. I hear noises coming from outside."

Noah was on it immediately, climbing up the staggered wall skillfully, using the uneven bricks as footholds, to get a peek through the slit.

Rex felt his lips curl upwards, even though he was supposed to still be angry, nearly smiling over Noah's zeal.

"C'mon, let me help," Rex offered, setting aside his pissy, grumpy feelings, to head over Noah's side. He stood under Noah and grabbed his thighs, positioning himself so that Noah could sit comfortably atop his shoulders.

"Woa!" Noah gasped abit in surprise, then continued in a rather strained tone, " _Hey, it's okay,_ I got this."

Even so, he didn't struggle atop Rex's shoulders, and his tone was controlled enough to show that he was putting the mission into priority, and setting aside the beef they've been having.

It reflected well enough for Rex to mirror his attitude – Rex prefered them on cordial terms anyway. Plus, despite him often acting like he let his emotions get in the way of his missions, Rex actually does often have keep a handle on his emotions to complete his tasks.

"It's easier this way. Just tell me what you see," Rex insisted, keeping his tone neutral.

The height was just perfect for Noah to get a good viewing, so Noah didn't try to argue, just looked out the crack to scan for abnormalities.

"Think this used to be a huge hall, there are broken pylons everywhere. And the perimeter is lined by bricks, all knocked short," Noah described whilst Rex listened.

"So, see anything moving?"

"Could you move ten paces to the right? Some of the pillars are blocking my view."

Rex side-stepped carefully, arms climbing up to wrap around Noah's thighs firmly to support him. There was a sudden calm between them, as if the storm from previous week never happened.

Oddly enough, it was easier than Rex expected, for them to work together so closely like this. But then again, he was reminded that they've always worked well together, so that chemistry simply kicked in the moment they're on mission. It was probably just instinctual and habitual, for which Rex was relieved. Something lifted inside his chest – a tiny stone wobbling from the wall he had brought up against Noah. Maybe after this, they could clear the air, or maybe even just forget about the whole thing that made this mess. In the first place, Rex couldn't even be sure why he was angry. Just some stupid reason caused by some other guy.

Noah suddenly shuffled as if to get into a more comfortable position.

"You ok?" Rex asked.

"Yea, just fine. Could you keep side-stepping? So I can get a look over the other side."

Rex did as requested, but soon after, he found himself deviating focus from the mission. He noticed his ears burning at the closeness of Noah's thighs pressed against it. And his hands grew clammy at the feel of Noah's muscled thigh under his palms. Rex didn't know why, but he started getting excited. All at once, images of Noah's agile kicks and jumps flooded his eyes. Rex had always admired Noah's prowess, marveling over these talented, powerful legs.

He knew the muscles beneath Noah's black pants –Rex had seen him in his briefs several times and knows how they moved proudly even when he was doing something as simple as a normal walk.

Rex swallowed hard, getting breathless as his memories played out, emphasizing at places Rex would normally never have given a second glance or thought. He remembered Noah's shaving episode, so recent that his thighs were up close in his mind's eye, white like cream as if they barely saw the sun, alluring. Noah used to sport a tan, being athletic and outdoors all the time, but in the few months of being completely covered up in Providence uniform, much of his skin returned to their natural fair tone.

 _God damn it_ , Rex couldn't stop himself and squeezed Noah's thighs as hard as how his chest was squeezed at that moment.

"Rex?" Noah questioned in worry, "Anything the matter?"

Rex bowed his head, shaking now, panting with excitement that was roused by his over active imagination. God, how he wanted to bash his head against the wall to knock himself out cold for having such a perverted reaction to his best friend.

 _What is wrong with me?_

Yet Holiday's words came running to the forefront of his mind, dispelling some guilt – it _couldn't_ be his fault entirely, for getting excited. He had been hard pressed to admit, but _shit_ , Noah really was _hot_ , and the more Rex thought about it, the more he felt so. And this time, he didn't need the excuse of being drunk to admit that to himself.

"Rex?" Noah asked in a more urgent tone then suddenly got off Rex's shoulder on his own, sending Rex in a panic.

"Rex, you're shaking. Is something wrong?"

Rex couldn't calm down, and could only return a mortified look when Noah turned him around. There was no way to hide his erection –it was straining against Rex's pants, making an enormous bulge. Noah's eyes balled at his crotch, and remained fixated there even when Rex cupped his front to hide such an embarrassing sight.

"Don't look," Rex rasped out, finally finding the nerve to say something without breaking out in spasms of want and need.

Noah flickered his gaze upwards and met his eyes.

"You're hard," he announced softly, licking his lips, red dusting his cheeks. "Why are you hard in the middle of a mission?"

Noah's lids lowered slightly with a look in his eye that was both of surprise, and what was it – _craving?_ Noah's breathing became equally heavy, lips parting.

 _Noah's aroused?_ Rex wondered, and crazily, he hoped he wasn't wrong. _Because of me?_ The thought excited him even more.

Without hesitation, Rex flipped them around, pinning Noah to the wall and threw a satisfied gasps at the electric pressure of their crotch against each other's.

"Rex! What the hell? _Get off!_ " Noah gasped wildly and tried pushing him off, to no avail. Rex was not letting up, pressing the full length of his body over Noah's, pulling back his hips an inch before driving it back onto Noah, humping him.

" _Ahh_ \- " Noah let out a half cry, before biting his lips, then crying out again, "Fuck off, Rex!"

Rex was no longer listening. He knew he really shouldn't do this, not in the middle of a mission, and not when they were supposed to be friends. In the back of Rex's mind, he worried about crossing the line, and of the dangers of being fuck buddies. But Rex could barely think, overwhelmed by the delirious sensations running through him from where their hips connected, frustratingly divided by the thick cloth of their pants.

Besides, Noah was _hard_ too, boner hardening evidently and quickly against Rex. He could feel his best friend weakening against his desire, sagging against him, knees weak like jelly.

" _Rex, we can't,_ " Noah rasped out breathlessly.

But Rex didn't listen. Especially not when Noah was saying one thing, but his body was saying otherwise. Besides, if Noah reacted whilst fully sober, and not drunk, then he really could fend himself if he wanted to. It appeared to Rex like Noah wasn't completely opposed to this.

So Rex swooped down to capture Noah's lips and it was like sweet, molten fire riding down his throat. All logic flew out Rex's head and all he begged for now was for Noah to relieve the tension at his south, be it using his hands or his mouth or any other way that Rex had secretly imagined before.

He no longer wanted to be troubled. Because, the truth was – if he could be honest, deep down somewhere, in the seedy, unspoken recesses of his mind, Rex knew that he had wanted it –wanted to try having Noah screw around with his aching cock. Rex had to admit that his curiosity was driving him nuts. He had already spent countless times secretly questioning himself how Noah did it with those other guys. It had plagued him ever since Noah admitted to like guys, _sexually_ , and even admitted to have _fooled around_ with men.

Maybe all that pondering had finally compelled him to try it for himself. So even if Rex knew desiring for such a physical contact just to fulfill some twisted sense of curiosity was meaningless and might complicate their friendship, he didn't want to stop. He pressed on with his intent, cupping Noah's firm ass with his hands and smashing their fronts hard together.

He could hear Noah's muffles, feel his words of protest humming inside his mouth, but he couldn't release Noah, possessed with nothing else but to submit to the call of his south that stirred to life at this brazen time. God it felt so good, _too good_ , to surrender himself like this. Rex was such an idiot – he should have done this sooner, should have devoured Noah when he was invited the other night. Drunk, but seductive, and wanton – _that Noah_ was much more honest.

He snaked his tongue across their joined lips, intruding Noah's cavern. The touch of Noah's pliant, wet tongue made him feel dazed, as at the back of his mind, he did not expect to be french kissing Noah. In fact, he _didn't_ plan to be doing such elicit things to his best friend in the middle of a mission. The sane part of him panicked and protested over what he was doing, but the mental screams fleeted beyond his better judgment, clouded by the oppressing, seedy desires borne from his hardening cock that held tyrannizing control over his body.

Besides, Rex couldn't be doing something entirely bad – Noah was gasping into his mouth, body trembling against his, hands splayed over his back, gripping his tee like a desperate nymph wanting more. Rex reminded himself that Noah liked guys, right? So he _couldn't be wrong_ if he was making his best friend feel good.

So he continued his rude intrusion into Noah's mouth, stroking Noah's tongue with his own, reveling at how amazing it felt. Until Noah bit down hard on his tongue, and a sharp pain erupted from every nerve inside his mouth and jaw. Rex tasted blood whilst Noah fisted his hair, yanking it back, glaring daggers beneath half lidded eyes, face flushed entirely red.

"Fuck, Rex! _We're still on a_ _mission_!" Noah panted heavily, brows angled into a darn right sexy frown, "And what gives? You didn't suddenly _switch_ _lanes_ , did you?"

Rex panted wildly, mind spinning with dozens of mad excuses tromping down his head, but not one he could say in justification for his current actions. So he merely said it as plainly and as simply as how Holiday most recently educated him.

"No, but does it matter? You know there was such a thing as _'friends with benefits.'_ "

Rex's face cracked to the side the moment those words left his lips. Though it was only a light punch and it didn't really hurt, Noah had hit him for the second time, so Rex was too stunned to react.

Rex remained frozen, face to the side, whilst Noah hollered at him.

" _You bastard!_ Don't you ever treat me like a toilet seat!"

Rex panicked only when Noah stalked off. This was not what he wanted. _Why?_ He wanted to kick himself. Why did he cave in to his seedy, immoral thoughts?

But at the same time, anger rose up inside his chest, welling up, squeezing his very breath, making him see spots in his vision. Because god _damn it_! Noah was gay and Rex could see that he _wanted_ it. It was vexing and bloody hell confounding, because Rex felt Noah's tremor beneath his body, and just knew with every fibre of his being that Noah was excited, that he was opened to wayward things with Rex. After all, _he was the first_ to beg Rex for more, so wanton and lascivious, gazing at Rex so lustily, it fucked Rex's head for two whole weeks since – never mind that Noah was drunk as fuck while he was sexy nymph incarnate.

So why was Noah rejecting his advances at the same time? Rex couldn't make sense of a thing.

Chest about to explode from the expanding storm inside him, Rex chased after Noah quickly, wanting to demand for an explanation, to get it straight once and for all. But he barely reached for his hand, when a sudden, heaviness in the air alerted Rex. Without a moment to lose, he dived for Noah straightaway and erected a shield over them, right before the ceiling broke up in thunderous blast and crashed down on them.

 **To be continued…**

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

*slip up in panic over getting stuck in the Pet Zoo with Beverly's release, back when she was still this monstrous spider like EVO: From the original cartoon.

*The Pack: From the original cartoon. The group of EVOs that serve and follow Van Kleiss.


	33. Swift and Heavy Forces

**Chapter 33: Swift and Heavy Forces**

(Another replica of an old foe appears – exactly what is going on? Chao ensues and suddenly, Rex disappears?!)

* * *

The debris from the ceiling slid down from Rex's shield, doing no damage. But the rest of the tunnel continued falling all around them, crumbling into dust, raining over them as if grinded and bashed downward by an invisible force. The ground tremored beneath Rex and Noah, quaking like the earth was going to split apart.

Rex gritted his teeth, straining against the heavy force pressing down on his shield.

"-bzzt- Rex- bzzt - *Reddick – get going –" a disrupted line came from Six.

Res cursed, familiar with that name. No wonder they were smashed on the ground by a heavy force pressing down on them. It felt like *Gravity-Meta was at work, squashing them with his terrifying powers of gravity. But it couldn't be true, since Reddick's Meta-Nanite had already been extracted by Caesar, same as what happened with Roswell. They had detained Reddick for over two years in a holding station in outer space, the only place where he couldn't utilize his powers. Then about a year back, the Science team found a way to extract the Meta-Nanite inside him, without killing the man. After which, they moved him to another prison facility away from the base, to a more secure location. It couldn't be that he broke out and got back his Meta-Nanite, otherwise, Providence would have known way before. This, could very well be another replica created by the Modifier.

There was only one way to be sure – to face him in battle.

Rex reached inwards, deeply, calling for Omega-1, questing for the key that Caesar had entrusted to him for safe keeping in the event that he had to face another foe with powers similar to Gravity-Meta EVO.

Rex connected like a motherboard decoding and reorganizing millions of bytes fed into its system. Instinct of the machine fused with man enabled him to know how to direct his nanites, arranging them by the millions, building a form over his body that should be combat proficient to stand against Gravity-Meta. It felt like tedious eons has cycled past when it was only barely a minute.

Rex kept Noah close to him, no longer needing his force field shield. He could feel his all new form effortlessly emitting a sort of anti-gravitational force that wrapped him and Noah like a safe bubble against Gravity-Meta's crushing force – sort of like a recoil.

However, the ground beneath them cracked, becoming more and more unable, chunks falling away into the lower passageways, signaling that it wasn't safe for Noah to remain there.

Rex levitated, carrying Noah with him, rising upwards to level ground, and found Gravity-Meta hovering two stories up in the sky, palms facing downwards, discharging his oppressing force. The other officers were not seen, likely stuck in their own positions all around Abysus. Rex quickly put Noah down on solid earth.

Whatever anger between them had dissipated, replaced by a sense of urgency in the face of this danger.

"I'm sorry, Noah, could you hang on here? I will try to make this fast."

Noah nodded solemnly, but wasn't prepared for the pressure beating down on him when Rex zipped ten paces away. Noah hugged the ground, winded, not able to even scream from the weight sitting atop him.

 _Hurry Rex!_ Noah screamed internally, at the same time praying for his safety.

Rex charged towards his massive, stocky, pale-brass colored opponent like a high speed ball, slamming it with a force hard enough to send it flying back. It was flung back over fifty yards, crashing into the dense forest that encircled the crumbled fortress. Trees felled heavily, thick trunks broken through from the impact, smashing onto earth with thunderous sounds.

"Good work, Rex," Six's voice came through the comms, for which Rex was relieved. Thankfully, Rex landed a hard enough hit that stopped it from dishing out its heavy powers over the area.

"Keep it busy while reinforcements arrive – they'll get us the appropriate weapons to neutralize it. And by the way, I've just got confirmation from HQ, this one's a fake, so be careful because it could differ from the original."

"Roger that, thanks."

Rex raced towards it for another body slam, about to hit it the moment it appeared from the tops of the forest canopy. However, it was ready this time, blasting an outward ball of opposing force that collided with Rex's own orb of power. Rex ricocheted several yards away like a ball bouncing off a hard wall, spinning in dizzying three-hundred-sixty degrees. Before he could steady himself, the replica collided into him, and he was thrown back helplessly even further, crashing into the forest just like what he did to the other. Even worse, it followed him right on his tail and landed atop him the moment he hit the ground, not giving him a chance to get up. Its oppressing power quickly upped, pinning and weighing him down, cracking the earth beneath him. Rex's body was luckily, still protected by his own cushion of polarizing force that kept the other's power from smashing his bones into dust. However, the amplified force was able to push back against Rex till he burrowed a couple of feet into the ground, entombed and unable to escape.

 _Damn you!_ Rex cursed inwardly, head pounding for now it took much effort to maintain his protective shield around him.

 _How do I work this? God damn it!_

Transient and infinitesimal, flashes of tubular nodules burned like rapid fireworks in his mind's eye, the sensation reminiscent to when he was rapidly learning to utilize his combined meta-nanites in his *Omega Nanite form. Since it was programmed to fuse with him, Rex quickly found a way to multiply his powers, enough to match his opponent.

Rex pushed back with confidence till he shot them high off the ground. Then they both zipped apart before rocketing into each other, colliding with a force that cracked the air, causing thunderous booms and sparks. They were evenly matched, climbing higher into the sky whilst they repeated their body slam over and over. They were faster each time, so fast that the heat released from their trajectory burned like white fire.

Watching from down below, it was a heart stopping scene – two blindingly bright, giant spheres dashing about the sky, white tails chasing behind, drawing numerous vector rings that mirrored round a central point. Delta and Foxtrot was scrambling to set up the anti-gravitational points that would nullify the Nanite robot that copied Gravity-Meta's powers. It was less powerful than when they last battled the original Gravity-Meta, slightly over three years ago. At that time, without Rex's ability to turn into his Omega Nanite form, it had been a devastating battle, because Gravity-Meta's powers had somehow grown progressively, as if it had absorbed the Earth's gravitational force, charging up like a battery. It was a hard, drawn out battle with colossal damage and losses before Providence and Rex managed to take it down.

This replica, on the other hand, despite having less of an oppressive force and appearing to lack the ability of lifting objects, made up for it with its speed. The troops worried, praying that Rex could keep up with the replica long enough for back up to arrive with the remaining components of their contraption.

Rex would be heartened if he could hear their sentiments and concern for him. In this case, Rex didn't have to look below to know they were doing their part to support him. They were hardy and well trained, equipped with bravery, knowledge and a good bonus of high tech equipment to get through their opponents.

Rex somehow kept his exhaustion at bay, able to keep going at the replica hard and fast, non-stop. He focused on mastering the droves of energized nanites within him, managing to connect algorithms that intensified his power, tipping the scales. Speeding with increasing velocity and an outpour of opposing force, Rex finally knocked back the replica in quick succession, until it couldn't keep up. It lagged enough for Rex to get the upper hand, throwing it down onto the ground and trapping it under the force of Rex's polarizing force field.

And right on time too – Providence back up have supplied the remaining components, evidently shown by the hexagon, lighted cage that climbed upwards from the ground in an arched fashion, facet by facet till it nearly closed overhead.

Rex set off jet boosters at his feet, rocketing skywards out of the cage before it closed, effectively trapping the replica. Triumphant cheers and claps sounded at Providence's victory, whilst Rex slowly landed outside it. Looking down at himself, he noticed that his new armor had multiple crack lines running through it. Reading his internal nanites, it was clear this upgrade was not to last, so he powered it down and let it crumble away, a bit sad to lose such an ability since it was such a force of power.

Earlier, upon activation, Rex knew at once that this 'key', that Caesar had injected into him, was basically a small fraction of the *Meta-Nanite holding dominion over gravity. Rex couldn't draw on his own Meta-Nanites, since he basically sort of *decommissioned them after the Worldwide Cure. However, Caesar had promised him once before, that he wouldn't try to recreate them again. Hence, there was only one source from where Caesar could have obtained this Meta-nanite. This must be the remaining fraction which he extracted from Reddick. There must have been some deterioration from Gravity-Meta weakening in outer space for two years, and the extraction process, which explained why Caesar instructed him very severely, that he could use this only _once_ , and only against a foe _similar_ to Gravity-Meta.

"Rex!" Noah came running towards him, eyes wide with relief.

"Noah!" Rex waved back, smiling, glad the danger has passed, till a strange buzzing in the surrounding air sent his skin tingling.

Colors, forms, strange lights flashed, once, twice, then flickered rapidly, appearing stronger, and more opaque each time. Figures moved in disarray, actions muddled and blurred. Noah slowed, caught in the middle of it, staring around himself in confusion. The rest of the Providence troops stopped what they were doing, and stared at the area where the strange occurrence was happening, equally confounded.

Gradually, the mirage became clearer, looking like a holographic movie, showing the characters in a scene of absolute chaos. Rex felt his breath lodge in his throat, recognizing the Consortium members in their EVO states, and picking out a silver-teal robotic-looking EVO that was most probably himself. Gasps came from the other Providence officers, catching on.

It was a ghostly apparition of the *epic battle that had taken place, nearly six to seven years back.

"What the hell is going on?"

Cries of alarm erupted amongst the officers.

"Noah," Rex called, suddenly gripped by an unexplained frenzy.

Just the tiniest flicker of the visage surrounding Noah, was enough to send Rex's nanites into overdrive.

 _"_ _Look out! Noah!"_ he screamed, Slyder expanding out his feet. But he barely zipped five paces when Noah suddenly vanished right out of thin air.

His voice died in his throat. The anguish was too incredible.

 _Noah, Noah, Noah,_ a mental chant echoed maddeningly, repeatedly. He boiled and despaired, nanites becoming like a tornado inside a pot, making him shake, making every muscle, every nerve hurt from the aching loss and outrage that he had let Noah disappear.

Why was he not fast enough?

 _NOAH!_

He wished his Noah to return, and searched desperately, not with his sight, but with his nanites, extending out his senses, for there was a buzzing that remained in his surroundings, like white noise, humming against him.

He willed himself to see beyond the ghostly battle crashing about him, ignoring the distraction. There must be something, something that he missed. His nanites whipped about in frenzy, working in overdrive, spilling out of him in trickles, searching for answers. The ghostly scenes began to blur, shifting, colors and forms stretched sideways as if pulled along an air current. And not just that, the surrounding Abysus, Six and the other Providence soldiers who ran towards him in concern – they started to distort and melded into one another.

Rex clutched his head for it pounded in agony, and not just his head, his entire body hurt as if he was put in a shredder. The pain was so intense, Rex couldn't even scream, just fell to his knees shaking violently, chest tight like it was about to burst.

The surrounding scene quickly became a swirling vortex of colors clashing together in dizzying chaos, like a spinning ferris wheel, with Rex in the middle of it, until suddenly, it became all white.

The raking pain through him suddenly dulled into mild pin pricks, allowing him to breathe properly. He fell forward, palms flat bracing an all white ground. Panting heavily, Rex's mind was in disarray, unsure what the hell had just happened.

 _"_ _Welcome, Rex."_

Rex glanced upwards at the deep voice, finding a bright emerald figure whose silhouette danced against the stark white surrounding them. Rex shook his head in an attempt to focus his vision, but it remained blurry in the brightness.

"Noah, where he is?" Rex rasped out weakly.

"I think you should be more concerned about yourself, since you've allowed me to trap you here instead – exactly, as we've planned."

Rex had no idea where 'here' was, but regardless, he'd no intention to stay.

"To hell with that."

Rex zipped lightning fast, punch meeting its face but just when he thought he had hit it, pain erupted in his left cheek, suddenly struck first.

Rex stumbled back, more from disorientation then from the force of the blow. Suddenly he was stumbling right into his humanoid opponent, receiving another punch, then another which he intercepted – _oh_ _no_ , _no he didn't,_ he was whammed again, pain exploding in his skull.

Rex swung another nanite-strengthened fist, but he met only empty air, and received a blow to his back instead. He swayed on his feet, unable to keep up from the punches that swiftly bombarded him from all sides. His vision blurred abit from tears dragged out due to the force of multiple blows at both sides of his temples. he clenched his teeth, a mix of despair and fury climbing, recognition dawning on him. *Xanubian –Time Meta EVO –what gave him an upper hand was his ability to control time. Thankfully, having fought with him before, Rex knew Xanubian was limited to going back only fractions of a second, and he couldn't activate his powers in rapid succession so many times.

Sure enough, Xanubian slowed down, just a tiny bit, then noticeably more. Rex's waiting and playing along, acting overwhelmed and losing, was finally over.

He shot strings of razor thin electric strings, binding Xanubian's neck and torso like a spider would to its prey.

Suddenly, Rex was back again, about to shoot high voltage, hair-thin currents lashing towards Time-Meta. But just right then, he switched, zapping at empty space. An electric lattice shrunk inwards at lightning speed, wrapping all around and over Xanubian, criss-crossed so tightly that Time-Meta was entrapped. Its' immediate screams gave Rex assurance and relief that his plan worked. To the unsuspecting and conceited Time-Meta, it may look like Rex was fumbling around in circles. However, he was actually spreading out thin currents all over like a cobweb, which burnt white like thin snakes, blending into the blinding whiteness of their surroundings. Laying down the large net will trap Time-Meta. Even if he rewound by a few fractions of a second, that would not give him enough time to escape from the large cast.

Xanubian hunched over, knees on the ground, spasming violently from the electric shocks. But when his screams gave way to laughter, Rex suddenly worried that his victory was yet to be secured.

"I see, you were able to notice the time rewind, can't you? Basically you laid down a clever trap, in preparation for this. That's quite some improvement for you, but you're not the only one. _I've got an upgrade too_ , _from_ _Modifier_."

It gave a lengthy chortled speech in between cries of pain and wheezes, whilst fighting to get up.

Right after, Rex felt his electric current recede, travelling in reverse, the lattice cast expanding outwards to how it initially was. And even further back – Rex was going backwards, every motion moving opposite like a video on rewind. He could see all happening in a dizzying speed but he was helpless to break out of it, his body not able to keep up with the rewound clock.

"In despair, aren't you? You ought to be, for I'm done playing games." Rex could hear Xanubian's words echo all around, unaffected and unlinked from the body moving backwards together with him, a rude reminder that the EVO has literally become much more adept at his powers, almost like Time-incarnate.

 _"_ _Adieus, Rex,"_ his words were cold and gloating. Its' form started fizzing, like static on screen, alarming him that it was getting away whilst Rex remained prisoned to moving in rewind.

"You shall remain _trapped_ for all time."

 _No, I can't!_ Rex screamed mentally, _Noah, Noah!_ Fervent ardor racked him, for he has not rescued his friend.

 _Damn it! Move! Faster, Faster!_

Rex willed.

The shredding pain rushed back into his body, as he fought to tear himself from the invisible force controlling his limbs.

Rex finally broke out from Xanubian's hold with a strangled cry, and he charged at the Meta-EVO, gripping his neck, giving the latter a nasty surprise.

"You! Damn you infallible bastard!" Xanubian cursed aloud and retaliated with large wiry hands strangling Rex as well. The real battle, however, was the clash of their nanite control, reflected by the choppy whiteness that started dispersing, becoming speckled with a universe of tiny, pinpoints of colors.

Rex quickly gained dominance, whiteness fading away, till it disappeared under his feet, revealing the scene below that was Abysus. Catching sight of a flash of blonde head below, was all Rex needed.

 _He's safe!_ Relief washed over him, though he did not know how that happened. He couldn't dwell on it.

Whiteness again, blanketed the view of the ground below. Rex was unable to break free from the tousle with Xanubian. His teeth chattered from the ripping pain, bones screaming from the force that threatened to shatter him from inside out.

Xanubian was forcing to lock Rex within Time, but Rex wouldn't let him. Rex fought desperately, until whiteness started enveloping them.

" _No_ , wait – stop! You don't know what you're doing!" Time-Meta panicked.

For the sight of their bodies disappearing like they were erased, the whiteness eating them away as easily as a swipe of a brush, was truly horrific. Rex didn't even know what was to be done, eyes awide in terror as the whiteness climbed up to his neck, his jaw, his face, and then his eyes – then whiteness shrouded him completely.

 **To be continued….**

 **::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::**

 **Footnotes/ Recap**

 ***Reddick / *Gravity-Meta / *Meta-Nanite in control over gravity:**

From the original cartoon, Reddick was a member of the Consortium. He was infused with a fraction of the Meta-Nanite that had the program to allow its host control over gravity.

 ***Omega Nanite form/ *epic battle that had taken place, nearly six to seven years back.:**

From the original cartoon, in the last episode. During Rex's second fight against the Consortium (as their EVO forms), he taps into his Omega-1's 'hidden' activation, drawing out his full EVO transformation in a supersized, bio-mechanized form. It allowed him to adequately counter the Consortium, who were fused together like a combined, EVO fighting unit.

 ***decommissioned them after the Worldwide Cure.:**

From the original cartoon, in the last episode. After Rex used his newly found powers to activate a 'cure' for all the EVOs in the world, he pointedly deactivates the four Meta-Nanites, as he didn't want anyone to try to abuse its power again.


	34. Loopholes

**Chapter 34: Loopholes**

(Rex wakes up… but something is terribly off…)

* * *

Rex was first aware of a dull throbbing in his head whilst lying on his side. Opening his eyes, he found an array of pastel flowers graphics on a white flat surface for as far his eyes could see, that abruptly cut off an edge.

 _A bed?_

Rex was momentarily confused, not remembering having last crawled into bed, or having such a flowery bedspread.

He got up, but couldn't, suddenly finding a weight on his hips.

"What the hell?"

He yelled and shot up in a flash, staring down his opponent, who had rolled to the side.

A small form, with a messy head of thick, dark hair, stirred.

 _A kid?_

The kid looked up – a little girl – rubbing her eyes groggily, looking bleary eyed.

"Daddy?"

Rex relaxed seeing that she wasn't a threat.

"Uh, sorry, I don't know where your dad is. Are you lost?" Rex asked gently, whilst he wondered why in the world was he in bed with a kid.

She looked around three, maybe four, with big brown eyes and thick, reddish lips, very pretty. Whoever were her parents must be one handsome couple.

"Daddy is here," she replied, eyes blinking and sat up slowly.

"Uh… no," Rex glanced around the room – an unfamiliar one, furnished and stacked with tons of things that were not his. Exactly _whose_ bedroom was he in? He can't remember squat. "I don't see him around."

"But Daddy _is_ here," she pointed a tiny finger straight at him, getting up on her knees, sounding abit forceful now.

Rex laughed lightly.

"Look, you're a cute daughter but I think your dad will be heartbroken if you went around calling other strangers 'Dad.'"

"But _you're_ my Daddy!" she insisted, big eyes frowning unhappily. From her stare, Rex became perplexed, realizing this kid was convinced he was her father.

"Look, kid, maybe I look like him, but I'm sure not."

She took a big breath and huffed, then crawled over Rex's chest, sending him in a panic.

" _No!_ Y _ou're my Daddy, you're my Daddy, you're my Daddy!_ " she repeated loudly, burying her face into his chest, tiny hands gripping his shirt.

"No, no, that can't be! I'd know if I got a kid, but I don't, so – "

The wail that came was so loud, the roof might have come down. Rex winched, at lost what to do. Her head was up, tears spilling out like a fountain, making him feel guilty.

"Uh, calm down kiddo, look, we'll go find your dad together, okay?"

In answer, she scampered off the bed and ran out the room, shocking him at how fast she could run on those short legs.

Rex had to chase after, of course, and once out the room, his eyes balled in terror, seeing the staircase and the little kid running straight for it. In huge strides, he picked her up before she could tumble down in disaster.

"Look, it's okay, we'll find your Daddy, okay?" Rex cooed softly, patting her small back, trying to console her.

She wailed even louder, Niagara tears wetting his shoulder.

"What is going on?"

Rex froze at that familiar, female voice, recognizing it even after months passed since they last met during her wedding. He felt abit peeved, seeing his _old flame_ at the foot of the stairs below. He still hadn't forgotten how she had wounded him.

"Baby, why are you crying?" Circe didn't look as surprised to see him, just focused on the kid he carried, coming up the stairs quickly for her.

"MOMMY!" the kid burst aloud.

The little girl stretched both arms towards Circe, so Rex gladly relinquished her.

"Now, there, there, Riaena, what got your fountains out?"

"DADDY DOESN'T WANT TO BE DADDY ANYMORE!"

Rex felt a blow to his head from her outburst.

Circe crooked a brow the way she always did when he was at fault for something.

"Rex, what did you say to her?"

Rex nearly forgot how to speak, just blinked back at her with confused eyes and struggling to make sense of why Circe was accusing him of refuting his status as a dad.

"That can't be," Rex was flabbergasted. Just barely past twenty-one, he counted himself still too young to be a father. "I'm nobody's dad."

His answer garnered a very crossed and biting look from Circe. He gulped, hard. He hadn't seen that look in a long time.

"Rex…" her growl came out low, warning.

"I can't be a dad. I'd know if I had a daughter, unless…"

His mind raced, quickly putting things together. Looking at the kid – Riaena – he tried to find the resemblance. Sure, she was dark haired like the both of them, and seemed to inherit their bushy brows, but really, was she really their kid? Rex swallowed hard in disbelief. He must be dreaming, he must be – he pinched himself to be sure, but really, he didn't need to. He wasn't so stupid as to mistake a dream for reality. This was _too_ real, even if it was unreal.

"Is she like," Rex paused abit, and coughed out his next words in struggle, "Our _hidden_ , _love child_? Circe, did you –" Rex felt his jaw tighten, "Hide this from me the last few years?"

Even as the words fell out, he knew logically that it couldn't be possible. Counting off the years, it hasn't been even two years since they broke up, and this child looked to be about four years of age. And whilst he was with Circe, he was as sure as hell she wasn't pregnant. After all, how could he have missed dating a woman with a pregnant belly? He wasn't that stupid or blind. Besides, wasn't she _supposed_ to be pregnant with someone else's kid and got married? _– to what was his name again?_ But then again, the maths just didn't add up either.

Yet, Circe was giving him that impatient look and sighing defeatedly, like she couldn't be bothered to attend to his claims that were obviously wrong.

"I see, joking around again, aren't you?" she started down the stairs, throwing her sentence back, "We don't have time for this, could you wash up?"

"But Circe –" Rex followed in step.

"We need to leave soon for Riaena's check up."

"Circe, listen!"

"I'll help Riaena with breakfast-""

"Circe! I'm serious!" Rex pulled her arm after she put Riaena into the baby chair, "I don't know what's going on. I didn't even know we – " he struggled abit, forcing the words out – " _had_ Riaena!"

Riaena bawled even louder, kicking up a fuss within the baby seat.

Circe's thick brows furrowed, eyes flashing.

"You're upsetting her!" she scolded, "I need to calm her down first. We'll continue this _later_."

Rex reluctantly waited it out, jittering at the side impatiently whilst Circe coddled and soothed her – _their_ supposed daughter. Thankfully, Riaena quieted down quickly, and was pretty efficient in feeding herself from some food mix in a bottle.

As soon as Riaena was settled, Rex grabbed Circe by the arm and pulled her a way off to the side.

"Sorry, Circe, but I _really_ need to get this straight – _this can't be happening_ ," Rex couldn't stop the panic and wariness from rising up, somehow knowing that something was wrong.

Then she raised her left hand, showing the back of it to him.

"And what are you saying? _Seriously,_ Rex? You don't know what's the meaning of _this_?!"

Rex stared at the bling on her ring finger, then searched his own hand, and realized a matching plain ring was there.

"Am I dreaming?" Rex wondered aloud, "because we _can't_ be married – you're married to… _Skwydd!_ " he suddenly remembered the dark blonde haired guy who was supposed to be their mutual friend. That was why seeing her made his heart ache – she had fucked with one of his closest friend. Granted, Rex and her have broken up by then, but it didn't change things that they went behind his back while he was still hurting. And whoever said it was okay for an ex to screw with a buddy? Rex felt so betrayed, and still feels betrayed.

Circe however, didn't seem to agree on his version of things. She glared, drilling holes into him.

"Did you get _amnesia_ or something?"

Rex just gawked. Why was she staring at him like he was the one saying the wrong things? He remembered it like it happened just yesterday – the small wedding reception in Hong Kong, discovering the truth, the long, wet flight back to base.

 _Circe married Skwydd._ Was already pregnant with his kid by then. However this kid – Riaena – came about, Rex had no fucking clue. Only that logic was fucked up somewhere because there was absolutely no way Riaena could have popped out.

"Of course not! You're the one getting shit mixed up!" Rex refuted, getting his words in order. "This is crazy. Stop playing around, Circe, and tell me what's going on!"

Circe looked completely affronted.

" _Me?_ Rex! You're the one who got out of the wrong side of the bed, disowning your wife and child!"

His temples throbbed, starting to hurt.

"No, no, no, no, this ain't right," Rex ranted, pinching between his brows. He could see from Circe's eyes that she wasn't screwing with him. She _really believed_ they were married, and that Riaena was _their_ kid. But that wasn't true. Things were not supposed to be this way. He wasn't even supposed to wake up here, in this house that looked foreign to him.

" _This is unreal._ We are _not_ married," Rex reiterated, voice laced with stubborn anger, "And in the first place, I'm not supposed to be here. I mean, before this I was –" Rex suddenly paused, not able to remember what he was doing before he woke up here.

He backed away a couple of steps, hitting the wall, cradling his forehead, head reeling.

 _Something was not right._

What was he doing yesterday? Or even the day before that? Rex suddenly, couldn't remember.

"Rex?" her tone sounded worried, and her sharp gaze softened, "What's the matter, are you okay?"

"No, I'm not," he mumbled softly, stunned and aghast at how unreal it was.

"Rex, c'mon, quit joking around, you're scaring me," Circe chided, her tone quivering slightly as she closed the distance.

"No, no, I'm not, I told you, I'm not," Rex kept muttering, head downcast, " _This isn't real_ , it can't be. There must be someone doing this. Someone's messing with me, I know it."

"Who, Rex? God, don't scare me! What's happening?"

Rex couldn't answer, because he was certain this was not real, that he wasn't married to Circe and they didn't have a kid. Because if it was, why couldn't he remember anything about them? Yet since it wasn't supposed to be real, then why couldn't he remember what it _actually_ should be like?

His memories were all a blur, blitzing like a damaged television screen. He knew himself well enough, could think clearly enough, yet despite knowing he was Rex Salazar, he couldn't recall anything of his past, except for Circe. She was the only solid image flashing in his recollections, but even then, many scenarios were kinda foggy, details unclear, except for the fact that Skwydd was the one who married her, not him.

He had attended their wedding, in a posh restaurant in Hong Kong – that much he was clear. He remembered a long flight over, and Circe was there, in a beautiful off-white dress, with Skwydd also there – _wait_ , was he there as Circe's groom? Or as _their guest?_

Rex bit his lip, hard.

Suddenly, he wasn't so sure anymore. The images blurred like water droplets on fresh ink of a paper. Rex felt his vision spinning along with his twisted memories. A terrible anxiety weighed heavily that someone has done something to spin him in confusion, yet he just couldn't think of who or why someone would do him harm. Was he someone with a lot of enemies?

Exactly, what was happening to him?

 **To be continued…**


	35. Tripping over gaps

**Chapter 35: Tripping over gaps**

(Rex struggles with his memory loss, and stumbles onto unhappy facets in his present circumstances.)

* * *

"Rex, talk to me, what's going on?" Circe asked again in gentler tones, initial agitation gone when she saw that Rex was really troubled.

Rex headed to the couch at the side and sank down onto it, exhausted from the mind-fuck.

" _I don't know_ , I just don't know what's happening. I can't remember any of this, or what I did before this."

Circe settled down on the couch next to him with her arms going around his shoulders.

"Rex, it's okay, maybe you're just stressed so it's making you forget things," she said, squeezing his shoulder lightly, "Just calm down first. Later, we'll find someone to talk things out. Everything's going to be okay, _Cariño_."

Rex jolted slightly on hearing that. When she called him 'darling' the way she used to in the early days of their dating, Rex became reminded of how they were so love back then. Even now, when she looked at him, there was so much love in her gaze, full of concern, and her voice was warm, melding over him like honey. Rex felt surprised he got the chance to receive Circe's attention like this, yet at the same time, extremely confounded. Why was he so certain that he wasn't married to Circe? They had been so in love, weren't they? Yet, he kept thinking that they had broken up.

 _Did I remember wrongly?_ Maybe Circe really did marry him instead of Skwydd. Looking at Riaena, the similarities were the proof in the pudding – it just had to be true.

"Right," Rex croaked, still unsure, but he had no choice but to go along this situation until he could figure things out, or see where it led.

He sighed heavily, and messed up his hair.

"Argh, didn't you say we have to take Riaena somewhere? Let me take a shower before that."

"That will be good, maybe you'll be more refreshed and your memory will come back," Circe smiled, warm, but tinged with unease.

He went back upstairs where he saw earlier was a bathroom connecting to the bedroom. He stared around the bedroom first, distracted. He couldn't recognize anything – not the Mexican floor rugs – or was it Spanish? – not the huge canvas art on the wall, the heavy, printed drapery curtains at the windows, the shelves stuffed full with books, various small sculptures and random ornaments of sorts and multiple mis-matched cabinets stacked all around. _Nothing._ He remembered nothing. All he knew was it was just far too colorful and messy – everything clashed in disarray. If it were up to him, he would prefer maybe lesser furnishings, and less clutter. He browsed through a couple of the books and magazines and wondered who read this junk. Certainly not him. Maybe Circe? It seemed doubtful. Anyway, just a huge television screen would suffice, hooked up to a game station, maybe a couch, and of course, a bed – that was all he needed, like… _like what?_ He froze in mid thought, suddenly recalling the very room he would have preferred but couldn't pin point whose room that was or where he had seen that.

He shook his head. He should just bathe.

Needless to say, the cool waters did nothing to refresh his memory. He brushed his teeth and washed up in an unfamiliar bathroom, and thought he might as well get a fresh change of clothing. That was when he noticed another thing that was wrong – his favorite piece of clothing was missing. He ransacked the wardrobe and drawers, rummaging the piles of clothes, pulling out several items to look for it, to no avail.

He put on a random dark tee and jeans and rushed downstairs where Circe was rushing about the place grabbing things and stuffing into a trolley-bag of sorts.

"Circe, my orange jacket – where is it?"

She froze in the middle of what she was doing.

"Orange jacket," she repeated and licked her lips slowly.

"Yea, you know, the one I always wore."

Her face scrunched up.

"You've never asked about it before."

Rex felt that panic rise up again, the sense of not knowing what he did, or didn't do.

"What do you mean I never asked about it? In the first place, I've _never_ been anywhere without it."

Circe pinched her brows and sighed heavily.

"Alright, I'll get it for you, later. For now, we might be running late, I still got stuff to get to Mom," she continued with what she was doing.

"Could you get Riaena her stuff please? I've already packed all our food in the bag."

Rex followed to where she pointed with her chin.

There was a big duffle bag on the counter, half filled with a couple of lunch boxes and loads of other stuff he had no clue what they were. And he has no clue what else to grab.

"Uh, what stuff?"

"Like her toys and books. You know, the usual," then she glanced at him, dread seeping into her gaze.

"Oh, wait, you don't remember?"

Rex gave a helpless shrug.

She sighed and looked a mix of despair and worry.

"Never mind then, just help Riaena get dressed. Her clothes are upstairs in the next room."

Rex nodded.

"Okay, Kiddo, you heard mommy, you and me, upstairs, to change clothes."

Rex gave Riaena a big smile and approached her high stool. But she pouted, frowned, and turned right the other away.

 _Damn, did she just snub me?Uh-oh._

"Riaena – "

He barely touched her when she screamed.

"No! I don't want you! I want mommy!"

"Mommy's busy, so I'm helping," Rex explained, trying to sound gentle and patient.

"No!"

"Riaena, please, listen to Daddy."

"No! He's not my Daddy!"

"Alright, listen, I'm sorry," Rex tried to placate her, arms going round her tiny shoulders.

"No! I don't want you!" she fought his arms off with such ferocity for a little kid, Rex had to remind himself this was no time to be impressed.

"Okay, my bad, then would it be okay if Daddy carried you?"

She paused a bit and eyed him with big, contemplating eyes.

"Yes."

"Then, I'm your daddy, aren't I? You said so."

"No you're not! You said you weren't, just now, and Daddy never goes back on his words!"

Rex was momentarily surprised himself that he taught this kid some great morals. Too bad it wasn't working in his favor now. He thought for a while. For a toddler she seems smart, so he could try to reason with her, or just grab her upstairs by force.

Riaena was glaring with arms folded now like a little boss, which Rex thought was incredibly cute, but yea, she would be too tough tor Rex to argue with. So he opted to grab her, picking her up from her high stool, ignoring her screams of protest. She struggled and thrashed like a fierce cub.

"Ow! Quit struggling or I'm gonna drop you."

She kicked around harder.

By the time Rex got upstairs and deposited her on the floor, he was exhausted and sort of half crawled to the drawer.

"Alright let's see, are your clothes here? Oh great! They are," Rex just picked out whatever and handed it to her.

"No no no! I don't want this!" she protested, pushing his arms away, face puffed up, looking more agitated.

"What? Why not? It's cute, and pink."

"That's someone else's hand-me-downs – it smells funny, so I don't want it."

Rex took a whiff and made a face.

" _Puh-whee_ , smells like moldy bread. You're right," Rex discarded it on the floor.

"This?" he picked out the next item to show her.

"It's pink, I don't like pink."

Rex raised a brow.

"Should have said so earlier."

He glanced back into the drawer.

"You're kidding me – like, _everything_ is pink in here!" Rex realized, just noticing.

"No, no pink!" she repeated adamantly.

Rex gave her pleading eyes.

"C'mon, you have to wear something other than your pajamas."

"No, no, no pink today!"

Rex was running out if patience.

"Sorry, no can do, little lady. Pink it is."

It was easier said than done. He spent a few minutes chasing after a screaming and darting Riaena, trying to get her dressed. But the most he managed was get her head and an arm into a pink top. She was so fast, like a squirrel, scampering away and pulling off the clothes with loud shrieks and laughter.

"Holy shit – how could you be so fast?" he huffed, "Your legs are like, so short!"

She stuck a tongue at him, perched from the bed.

"Okay okay, I give up," Rex eyed her wearily, defeated, "Then choose what you want to wear, or do you just prefer to stay in that?"

"I want Mommy's clothes!" she announced and grinned happily.

"Right, then here we go, next doors," Rex obeyed, and went into the connecting master bedroom, with her skipping behind.

Rex eyed her this time and asked first.

"What color?"

"Hmmm… black!"

 _Great! Tons of black stuff here_ – Rex rummaged around and found a short tank top. He knelt and held it against her shoulders.

"Great! This fits!" though it was till her knees – whatever. She seemed excited anyway and let him dress her.

"It has become a dress on you!" Rex laughed. But it looked okay, and he had enough of playing dress up.

Man, He was tired. He couldn't imagine doing this every day for her.

He brought her downstairs again, but didn't realize that he was actually carrying her without her making any fuss, until he reached the bottom.

 _Well_ , he smiled to himself, _at least something good came out of the earlier exercise._

Circe looked about done and frowned a bit, giving Riaena's makeshift dress a onceover. But she looked skyward and probably thought better against asking.

"Alright let's go."

They headed out together, with Rex helping Circe carrying one bag while juggling Riaena in the other arm.

"Rex, wait, her shoes."

"Oh right," Rex smiled sheepishly.

"Never mind, let me do it," Circe said instead.

Rex went down the porch to the front yard where there was more space, then shape shifted, or rather, built Nanite constructs over his legs to form a bike. He made sure to add a comfy and safe side-seater for the girls, but got a shock when he received hair raising screams from Riaena.

He spun round to find Riaena with tears spilling out, clinging onto Circe's leg for her dear life, while Circe gave him an absolute look of horror and trepidation.

"Um," Rex quickly collapsed his construct, withdrawing back most of his nanites into himself, getting the sense that he shouldn't have done that.

"Is Riaena _afraid_?" He couldn't wrap his head around it, that his _own_ daughter would be frightened of his abilities.

"What's happening with you? _You've never_ – not once in seven years," she trembled in between shaky gasps, hand flying to her lips, "What were you thinking?"

His sense of terrible unease heightened. He became torn between rushing over to soothe Circe and Riaena but he needed much soothing himself, so he remained where he was.

"Well we're going out, aren't we? I figured I'd give a ride, you know, like usual."

"Well, our usual is _that_ ," she pointed at the SUV parked near the gates that Rex didn't notice.

"Right, but what do you mean earlier? You can't mean that I've never activated at all for _seven years_?"

"Just get in the car, I'll drive," Circe merely replied, ignoring his question. But the look in her eyes was all that Rex needed.

Rex didn't argue, and went into the passenger's seat at the front, waiting glumly whilst Circe hugged and soothed Riaena till she calmed down. Then Circe carried her over and deposited her into the baby car-seat.

"Actually, on second thought, maybe you should stay home. I'll take Riaena alone," Circe suggested.

Rex eyed Riaena from the mirror, who had stopped crying, but continued to sniffle and eyed him a little warily, confused even. Rex immediately felt affront climb up his back. No kid of his was going to be frightened of his EVO-side. And furthermore, he may be new at being a dad, but he sure as hell know a father wouldn't miss his toddler's trip to the doctor for any reason.

"No, I'm okay, I mean, I should come along, to jog my memory abit, you know?" Rex disagreed.

Circe looked doubtful and worried, but didn't stop him.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The trip out that day was an eye-opener, in a number of ways. First off, the moment Rex realized Riaena was actually there at the doctor's to get an injection, he steeled himself to be ready to pin down a bawling, struggling monkey.

But Riaena was surprisingly brave. Circe tried distracting her with the toys they brought along, but Riaena was super alert by the doctor's movement, and wasn't bought into the toys. She stared so hard at the needle, face scrunched up in trepidation, yet when the jab came, she made only a tiny peep and flinched a bit. A tear or two escaped, and she sniffled abit, burying into Circe's chest for comfort after it was over, and that was it. No drama. The other kids in the next rooms, on the other hand, wailed so loud the ceiling boards might have shook.

The next thing, Rex never knew how long it took to wait in line for the doctor, and then after that, to collect medicine and make payment at a separate wing of the small hospital. They spent over three hours sitting around the waiting rooms that afternoon. At least Riaena was well behaved – after all the fuss she made at home, Rex thought she would make a ruckus in public. But she was surprisingly quiet and tamed, playing by herself and occasionally plodding up and down the waiting aisle, lost in her own world.

It was just as well, since Rex was busy with his own thoughts whilst keeping an eye on her. Rex had a certain sense of disparity, wondering why he had always thought waiting times should be much faster. But for the life of him, he couldn't remember which was the hospital he used to go. He seemed to recall a bunch of doctors swarming around him all the time, and they were so efficient, and always right there on the dot when he needed them. But his memory was fuzzy. Maybe that was it – had he been plagued with a memory problem and missed his last treatment? But that didn't make sense either, since Circe ought to have known if that was the case. However, she was just as rudely shocked as he was. Which brings him to the third point.

The hospital had a psychology department, and making a pre-consultation in order to book the first assessment required _more waiting_. And _more money_ , which Circe readily forked out since he didn't bring along his wallet, nor his mobile, for that matter – hell, he didn't even know where he put it, let alone remembered to bring.

Curious and a little worried about the payments, he tentatively asked her about it, but Circe dismissed it readily.

"We have more than enough," she assured, crooking a brow, though again, she have that worried look that he didn't know a thing.

In any case, that was enough to rest his mind over money matters. He was sure they must have already some kind of finances worked out between them – all couples do, right?

The pre-consultation was awkward as hell however, making Rex wish they didn't waste the few hundred dollars on it.

Rex couldn't explain his situation very well, mostly because he was still trying to make sense of it. So Circe ended up doing most of the talking. He was touched and warmed by her concern, all serious and worried, and he felt like beaming every time she referred to him as 'my husband'. It sounded so good to his ears, he barely listened to the psychiatrist. The doctor made a bunch of crappy hypothesis anyway, like perhaps he was overloaded at work, or he had a bump to his head, or he was leading a double life and became mentally stressed and was having temporary amnesia. The doctor couldn't deduce the real cause of it until _further_ assessment, which made Rex lose confidence in him. Well, whatever, Circe was convinced it would be good for him, so he let her book his next appointment.

By the time they were done at the hospital, it was time for a late lunch. Riaena gobbled down her packed sandwiches like a hyena, surprising Rex, and vexing Circe who chided her to slow down. When that was done, they were finally out of there, but went on to the next item on the agenda – Circe's mom – which was the fourth thing that surprised Rex. He hadn't actually digested Circe's words in the morning when she talked about going to her mom's place. But now as Circe was driving over, Rex suddenly thought he remembered something.

"Hey Circe, aren't you and your family on bad terms?"

Circe cast him a sidelong glance.

"Yea, donkey years ago."

"Oh, so you patched up," Rex noted to himself, but frowned, now unsure why they did not even get along in the first place.

But when he asked her about it, her arms stiffened on the wheel, jaws tightening, so Rex decided it was probably best not to ask further.

"Well, Riaena seems excited," Rex noted aloud, noticing her from the mirror.

The little girl was fidgeting in her car seat, singing a cute song about going to grandma's, beaming widely.

A soft smile came over Circe's face, earlier tension disappeared.

"Yea, because grandma spoils her rotten."

Rex lifted his brows and smiled back.

"You don't say."

Not too long later, they entered a quaint neighborhood, with terrace houses much like his own, but with huge lawns, many with manicured gardens. Circe entered the driveway of a unit that had a few kids running around the lawn.

"Uh, so, they're Riaena's cousins?" Rex asked, suddenly remembering Circe had two other siblings.

She crooked a brow.

"No, they're the neighbours' kids. Mom's sort of the resident nanny here."

She parked, but right before Rex got out the SUV, she grabbed his arm.

"Wait, Rex, about Mom… I'm sorry to say this, but she _can't_ know about your… memory issue. Okay?" Circe's eyes were both pleading and guilty at the same time.

"Don't worry, she won't discover a thing," Rex gave her a thumbs up and a huge grin.

Out the vehicle, Rex maintained his big smile, seeing a dark haired, older woman seated at the porch. She looked right about the age to be Circe's mom, and though she was a distance away, Rex could see the resemblance. The woman stood when she saw them, smiling and waving, and started down the steps.

Rex suddenly felt nervous, like he had never met her mom before, which given his memory lapse, it really did feel as if this was his first time meeting her! He glanced to Circe for a cue, but she was helping Riaena off the toddler car seat.

He felt strange standing around whilst her mother was looking at him expectantly.

 _Alright, be the son-the-law, be the son-the-law, be the son-the-law._

"Mom!" Rex exclaimed in the most cheerful, I-miss-you-the-mother-of-my-wife kind of way as he could manage. He threw his arms wide open and closed the distance to give her a bear hug.

Another woman appeared out the front door right that moment, and frowned upon seeing him, giving him a bad feeling.

"Grandma!" came Riaena's scream from behind but she dashed past him to hug the _other woman_ instead, much to Rex's dismay.

Rex felt the chest of the woman he hugged, bubble with laughter.

Letting go, she had a lopsided smile and eyes that twinkled.

"Nice to see you too, Rex. But have you gotten old to mistake me for Megan?"

While Rex stuttered, Circe came to his side for rescue.

"Hey Aunt Jo, you know what a joker he is."

Circe exchanged quick pecks on the cheek with the woman Rex now knew was her aunt. He suddenly vaguely recalled that she had talked about Aunt Jo before, that they used to be very close before… _before what?_ Again his memories cut off like someone just sliced a movie reel. Whatever, he just knew something bad had happened that caused Circe to be estranged from her family for a long time. So she rarely ever wanted to talk about them.

"Well, c'mon on in, we have tea ready," Aunt Jo said warmly then turned towards the kids, clapping her hands.

"Alright kids! C'mon, into the kitchen! Cookies are ready!"

While the kids cheered and stampeded past them into the house, Circe cast Rex a slight frown for a fraction of a second before going up to kiss her mother.

Rex followed suit, but he couldn't keep a sheepish smile off his face.

"Mom! You look great, feels like it's been forever since we met!"

Or more like _never_.

She smiled, but her gaze was sharp.

"Oh? But you were here just _last week_. You're not trying to charm something off me are you? Charming away my darling Circe _wasn't enough_?"

 _Ouch._ If that wasn't a personal attack, Rex didn't know what was. Had he always been the son-in-law that she disapproved of? That sucked.

"Mom!" Circe cried aloud, "Didn't Aunt Jo say there are cookies? We only had sandwiches for lunch so we're pretty hungry."

She held her mother's shoulders, directing her into the house quickly. Bless Circe for stepping in. Otherwise, it would have been awkward for Rex to reply.

Riaena joined in with the noisy and lively kids, taking some time to settle down around the dining table, which had a delicious spread of saccharine goodness. Rex had a pendant for sweet things, but at the moment, he felt no appetite, still digesting the bizarre things that were happening.

Circe acted like she was past the episode of their morning, helping her mom and Aunt Jo to distribute some portions of the food equally amongst the seven children. Boisterous chatter erupted all around him, with the kids talking animatedly, eating and playing with their food at the same time whilst the adults attended to them, half chiding them to eat properly and half having a lively conversation of their own.

Rex didn't help with babysitting the kids, since he didn't have any experience on how to handle them at mealtimes. Besides that, he knew he should probably attempt some conversation, but he was unable to join in, since he knew absolutely nothing about what they were talking about. Not even when the topic about her dad came up. It turned out that the stuff she brought over were leftover things that belonged to her mom. Circe had picked them up from her dad's place on Megan's behalf.

 _So Circe's parents are separated?_ He guessed from the conversation and frowned inwardly – he couldn't even remember that.

"Not hungry? You barely touched your food."

Rex jolted abit and looked at Aunt Jo.

He gave an awkward smile.

"Uh, yea, I kinda feel like a shipwreck happening in my stomach."

 _Make that his entire brain._

"Oh dear, and we've finally got the ingredients to make your favourite pie too – guess I'll pack for you to bring home," Aunt Jo offered warmly, "And let me get you some meds."

"Oh no, no, it's okay, Aunt Jo, I'll be alright with just some water."

He caught a slight twitch on both brows of the older women sitting across from him, and grimaced inwardly, wondering if he had said something that was wrong.

"Mmh-hmm," Aunt Jo quirked a high brow, tone lined with suspicion. Megan just frowned, brows nearly knitting together.

Well, they did say one couldn't bluff their way past old women for they were as sharp as hawks. He started getting nervous, a tight knot forming in his belly. Shit, at this rate, he _really_ would have a shipwreck in his gut.

"… Actually, I'll help myself to some water, if you don't mind," Rex nearly choked, and sort of awkwardly left the table, needing to escape from the prodding gazes of his elders.

Thank god the kitchen was in another room, where he could gather himself, hidden from view.

"Yea, actually, he hasn't been feeling well since this morning," Rex heard Circe say, and felt perplexed why Circe sought to lie. When she requested him earlier to not let her mom find out about his memory problem, he thought it was just because she didn't want her mother to worry. But from the moment he met Megan, for however short it was, he felt this strange, sort of hostile reception. Wasn't a mother-in-law supposed to be friendlier? Hell, Aunt Jo was far more warm and welcoming towards him.

"Oh dear, then didn't he see the doctor earlier? I mean, you were at the hospital for Riaena's shot after all," came Aunt Jo's reply.

"No, it's not really that, it's just work, Rex's been pretty stressed out recently."

A grunt came immediately.

"You must be kiddin' me, for a man who works only three days week! What does he have to deal with?"

The words came like blow whamming into his back even though he was in the next room. No, scratch that, it was precisely that she criticized him behind his back whilst he was still within obvious hearing shot, that was even more damaging.

"Mom!" came Circe's cry, "Don't say that! His job is grueling! And besides, you know it's the best for us since he could look after Riaena most days. A nanny is too expensive."

"Hmph! Well, I'm totally free of charge! I believe I've told you many times before!" her mother continued, disgruntled.

"Yea, and also too far away for me! I have to drive like an extra hour!" Circe shot back.

At this point, Rex felt deeply uncomfortable standing where he was whilst the conversation was turning ugly. Should he go back there or remain where he was? Neither seemed a good idea. Even the kids seemed to sense the bad drama, and had quieted down.

Luckily, Aunt Jo did the damage control, skillfully steering the conversation onto other things, and the atmosphere lightened considerably, becoming lively once again. And luckily, none of the women questioned why Rex disappeared into the kitchen for so long. Obviously, he didn't have the face to show himself back there after Megan's scathing remark of him. Even more than that, he felt angry to be subjected to Megan's dislike of him, when he was totally clueless what he did that made her dislike him. It felt so unfair, and begrudging it, Rex didn't know what kind of face to show back there, so he opted to remain in the kitchen, until it seemed that the meal was over.

Aunt Jo tactfully suggested that Megan go unpack the stuff while she watch the kids, which left Circe to do the dishes. The boisterous noise of the children softened as they left the dining room, at the same time that Circe came in.

"Hey you," she wore an odd face, "Wanna help me wash up?"

Rex nodded stiffly, sure that his face was equally odd.

Awkward silence filled the kitchen as they worked silently by the basin. Rex had the distinct feeling that things like this were not uncommon between them. And he had to know why.

Clearing his throat, he quietly asked straight out if her mom doesn't like him.

Before Circe could reply, he heard someone clearing her throat behind them.

"Well, how about you recognize another woman as your wife by mistake? Then, you'll see how Circe respond."

Aunt Jo was the one there, but though her tone was kinda curt and she had one brow raised into an arch, her gaze was light.

Circe threw an awkward laugh to dismiss it, but Rex could see it was pointless to pass it off as a joke.

Aunt Jo wasn't buying into their charade, by the looks of her marching up to them.

She crossed her arms over her chest, regarding the both of them with a twisted smile and twinkling eyes.

"Really, is there something wrong, Rex, that you wanna share?"

"Aunt Jo –" Circe started, sounding a bit defeated, and pleading at the same time.

"No, I mean it. For starters, like you want to tell me why you called me Aunt Jo instead of Joanna."

She stared at him questioningly, sharp as a hawk, telling Rex that he was a hundred percent busted.

Circe sighed loudly and leaned her hip against the sink.

"I can't hide anything from you, can I?"

Aunt Jo smiled, crinkling up faint lines at the corner of her lips.

"No, you can't fool a wise sage like me. And you've got one coming if you think Megan isn't going to sniff something out."

"Oh god, she can't know!" Circe's anxious reaction more than confirmed Rex's suspicions.

"Why, because she'll give you more trouble because she already, doesn't like me?"

Circe gave him a pained, apologetic and guilty look.

"Look, Rex, I'm sorry if this feels new to you, but… just try to bear with this, for my sake, okay?" Circe begged.

Rex shrugged, pretending not to care.

"Well, since I can't actually remember a thing, I guess I can't really care much, could I?"

Aunt Jo laid a gentle hand on his back.

"Son, you mean you lost your memory?"

Rex showed the older woman an agonized twisted smile.

"Guess so."

Aunt Jo let out a sharp gasps.

"How could it have happened?"

"We don't know. It happened just right this morning, so suddenly," Circe answered, looking away, hands wrapping round herself. Rex could see her eyes watering, revealing how this must be eating up inside her despite how well she appeared to be taking this since morning.

He felt guilt well up inside him. Even if he was as much a victim here, he felt somewhat responsible for making her feel this way. He was her husband after all, right? He closed his arms around her to comfort her, wishing and willing with all his might that he would return to normal, that his memories would come back, and he wouldn't have to cause Circe this much pain.

Aunt Jo hugged the both of them.

"I'm sorry to hear this, and from the bottom of my heart, I hope everything will be alright.

Rex felt his chest thicken with emotion, but he held back his tears. This was no time for a man to cry. He needed to get back on track as soon as he could – for Circe and for his daughter too.

"And well, I hope to talk about this more, but with Megan here…we have to find another time," Aunt Jo continued with a slight huff. "So, before Megan starts wondering what the three of us are doing here, I suggest Circe and I go help her put away her things. You know how awful she must feel packing away all those memories with your dad, even if she hates to admit it."

Circe nodded quickly and dried her eyes before any tears could spill out.

"And you, Rex, won't you mind looking after the kids?"

Rex nodded, feeling better over her warmness towards him.

"Yea, I'll do just that."

So while Aunt Jo and Circe joined Megan upstairs, Rex went out to the porch, finding the kids playing on the lawn. He took a seat on the wicker chair and watched them, smile coming to his lips as he watched Riaena racing around. Damn she was fast – easily outrunning the taller kids. She looked to be the youngest in the lot, but as they cycled through different games, it seemed as though she was the one calling the shots. Indeed, he noted she was quite the bossy type, often planting her hands on her hips and pointing at the other kids, instructing them what to do. And the others seemed to go along just fine without fuss. He leisurely played with the thought if that trait was a combination of both his and Circe's headstrong and independent nature.

A long time passed before Riaena bounded towards him.

"Daddy! Daddy!" she shouted.

"What? What?" Rex got up, wondering why she suddenly came towards him so urgently.

She grabbed his wrist with both hands and dragged him with quite some force, leading him to the other kids.

"The monster is here!" she screamed without warning, and suddenly leapt away from him to join the other kids who screamed along, scrambling to form a line behind her.

"Don't fear, you guys! I'll protect you!" she declared loudly in the face of a confused and stunned Rex.

"Huh? Wait, what's happening?" he pointed at himself, "Wait, am I playing the monster?"

"Yes, you terrible beast! Try as you might, you won't catch my people!" she held out both arms straight by her side, knees bent in a stance like she was ready to dodge.

Somehow, Rex didn't know why that idea irked him. It was childish of him to think that, but he preferred playing the hero, really.

"But I don't want to be the monster."

Surprise came to Riaena's face for a second. That she frowned, lips turning into a cute snarl.

"No! You always play the monster!" she insisted and stamped a demanding foot on the grass.

Oh well, there was not contesting to that, is there?

"Okay, okay," Rex relented, and tried guessing how he used to play with them.

He circled them slowly for a bit, testing the waters. Riaena mimicked him, circling the opposite direction, always keeping her front fully facing him, whilst the other kids stayed at her back, giggling and squeaking abit.

 _Ah-hah!_ Rex got the gist of the game quickly.

He felt his lips curl upwards twistedly. _Well, this could be interesting._

He sped up, but not too fast, pulling back at the last minute when he nearly reached the kid who was last in the line. They screamed, little legs pattering away in mock fright, but mostly it was shrieks of laughter. Rex chuckled and repeated the near catch and retreat, never too close to reach them even though he could, yet not too far away to keep them on their toes. Despite how simple the game looked, Rex found himself having fun, especially seeing his little girl front and center.

Riaena was a face of a fierce warrior, looking so serious as she faced him. But she lit up into burst of joy in between tensed moments, thoroughly enjoying the game. Rex had no idea it could be so fun playing with kids.

But soon enough though, the kids ran out of stamina, slowing down so much till Rex couldn't give any more leeway, and caught up, one by one, snatching them up into the air, and doing a few twirls to give them an extra exhilarating kick before depositing them onto the ground.

They shrieked with loud laughters, and continued giggling even when they were freed on the ground. Finally, Riaena was the last to be caught, and whilst he spun her around high in the air, Riaena screamed for him to turn faster.

And so he did.

"Faster, Daddy! FASTER!" she demanded more, laughter ringing like delightful bells to his ears.

And well, he did, against his better judgement.

The instinct to turn to his Nanites for that extra thrill, came, lower half converted into a spinning-top of sorts, twirling around a carefully balanced base at high speed.

Screams erupted all around, piercing his ears, alerting him that he was doing something wrong.

 _Shit!_

He cursed inwardly, but needed another ten seconds to come to a comfortable halt due to the momentum. The whirlwind blur of colors steadied into the bunch of kids rooted on the grounds with jaws hanging wide open, and the three women who stood horrified by the door.

 _"_ _Let go of my granddaughter!"_ Megan yelled furiously and hurried towards him, quickly followed by Circe.

"Oh baby! Come to mommy!" Circe cried shakily, terrified gaze piercing Rex.

Shit, if even his wife thought he was doing something dangerous to their kid, then he must be a terrible father.

"How could you! _Monster!_ Were you trying to kill Riaena?!" Megan accused.

He looked down at Riaena who didn't stop screaming and felt more guilty pangs assault him. Tears were even coming out as she shook visibly.

But before either of the women could reach for Riaena, her shrieks suddenly transitioned to fanatic laughter and it was as clear as day that her whole face was beaming in sheer excitement.

"Again, Daddy! AGAIN!" she ordered.

Megan froze, dead with eyes of pure abhorrence.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Needless to say, the rest of the day did not go well, or should he say, he would have been better off sucked into a black hole.

Rex very nearly had to fight to carry Riaena back home with him.

Megan exploded all out after his little spinning stunt, and did not spare saving him any face by berating him and criticizing him in all manners, mostly at how an 'EVO like him wasn't fit to be a husband or a father'. She was insulting even, refusing to let her granddaughter stay with – as how she put in – _'an Abomination.'_

Circe was no help – glad as Rex was that she was on his side, arguing back and defending him with all her might. Her heated quarrels however, only served to fan the flames, till it didn't look like the situation was ever going to calm down.

Aunt Jo did her best to calm them, while Rex did the best thing he could do – he shut up, containing his anger on the couch, grinding his teeth until his jaw ached.

Finally, he could take the unjust tirades no longer and promptly stood, picking Riaena up and marching out the place. Even then, Megan was relentless and nearly crazed. She chased after, grabbing Riaena, refusing to let go. Losing patience, Rex gave her no respect – the tug of war was his to win easily, and he zipped the hell out of there with Riaena in tow, turbine wings working in full force.

Perhaps it was callous of him to leave his wife there, but in his moment of agitation and urgency to keep his daughter with him, his sudden, crazed fatherly instincts made Riaena his top priority. He could only hope that Circe would be understanding of him and would come back to him by taking the car.

Riaena meanwhile, was a crying mess all the way, even when they got home, no doubt terribly affected by their ugly quarrels. He spent a long time comforting her in his arms in the bedroom, rocking her slowly, trying his best to be the dad he was sure he could be. He continued holding her and patting her bum lightly even after she cried herself to sleep.

Much time have passed, and Rex started worrying about why Circe wasn't home even though the sky darkened outside the window. The worst thing was he couldn't even reach her since he couldn't remember what her number was. Just when he decided to leave the house with Riaena in tow to search for her, she entered the room, looking like a wreck.

Her mascara had run, staining her cheeks, eyes red and puffy, hair in a complete mess.

Rex felt guilt rack through him. Yet there were no words he could say that would be enough as an apology. He could only hold out a shaky arm, and she shuffled towards him on the bed, leaning into his embrace.

She breathed heavily, nose heavily stuffed from an overdose of crying, that being the only sound punctuating the heavy silence on the room. Finally, after a long while, Rex managed to croak an apology.

Circe accepted it with a soft peck on his lips, then he felt her tears on his cheeks.

" _Cariño,_ " she breathed shakily, "I'm scared, what is going on with you? What, is going to happen to us?"

Rex couldn't answer, jaw tightening, a sharp twinge at his chest.

How he wished he knew.

 ** _To be continued….._**


	36. Stranger than Fiction

**Chapter 36: Stranger than Fiction**

(Rex tries to make sense of reality and make the most of it… even if nothing was coming to him.)

* * *

The following morning, Rex woke with a heavy head, feeling exhausted, since he almost stayed awake all night, sleeping in between Circe and Riaena, one arm around each of the girls. He must have finally caught some shut eye only about two hours, for he felt like he barely slept.

Feeling movement next to him, Rex peeked open a heavy lid, watching Circe get up and go about the room, going in and out the bathroom, then getting her clothes. When she started changing in front of him, Rex blushed, heart hammering a little inside his chest. It felt almost odd – even though he supposed he should be used to it by now, he felt more like the inexperienced boyfriend peeking at his girlfriend in her lingerie for the first time. It felt like forever since he last saw her so… well, scantily dressed.

He waited till she was fully dressed in a dark, pant-suit before making himself known that he was up.

"Wow, that looks sharp," he complimented, "What kind of office are you working at?"

Circe half turned and crooked a brow as she bunned up her hair.

"So, your memory is not jogged yet?"

 _Oops,_ guess it wasn't such a good idea to be reminded of their problem the first thing in the morning, but well, there were no two ways about it except to face the issue head on.

"Maybe the doctor's appointment next week will help."

She nodded stiffly, then replied his initial question.

"I'm an administrator in a law firm. Up in the city."

"Wow, that's cool. I can't believe I didn't know how capable my wife is!"

Circe gave him a half smile of pleasure, putting on her earrings.

"It's just a small company, though, anyway, you get ready too. You have shift today, so I'll drop you off first then –" she suddenly paused, and blinked at Rex, who blinked back.

Seemed like Circe said her last line out of habit and only realized the conundrums that posed after she said it.

"Um, maybe I should call in sick for you."

Rex sat up straight.

"No, I should go."

She gave him a look like he was crazy.

"What? I'm not handicapped, am I?" Rex challenged lightly, shrugging his shoulders, "I just need to know what I have to do."

Circe arched one brow looking appalled at his preposterous suggestion. Rex didn't let her lack-of-believe shatter his confidence.

"Well," he crooked a brow in mirror, "What do I work as?" he then threw his arms up in the air in questioning.

Circe pursed her lips while sucking in her breath like a vacuum cleaner.

"You're a Mr-Fix-It-All," her words flowed out together with the air she exhaled out.

"Uh… what do you mean? Like, a mechanic?"

She nodded. "Plumbing, electricity, cars – whatever, you name it, someone's got a problem with an appliance, they call you – your company I mean."

"Mmmh-hmm…." Rex trailed off, rubbing his chin in thinking.

Circe sighed and reached for her phone, but before she could dial anything, he reinstated his stand. He felt that he should go, if anything, to see it would jog his memory. And even if it didn't, there wasn't any harm trying it.

"Yea, except that you may not recover all your knowledge and skills on the job."

"Then I'll learn on the spot, or I'll wing it, somehow, I always do," Rex laughed, trying to sound confident.

Circe didn't share his confidence, nibbling her low lips doubtfully, but she eventually agreed.

"Wait, do we have a nanny coming in today?" Rex remembered to check, getting off the bed to get ready for work.

Circe nodded.

"She comes in about another thirty minutes or so and will help Riaena get started with breakfast."

Rex nodded.

"And what time does she leave?"

"When you get home."

"…Which is, at what time?"

"Uh, good question. Yours is a half day shift today, but while we're on that, let me just run through some things with you so we can avoid another repeat of yesterday's disaster."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Circe wasn't kiddin' when she said he was a 'Mr-Fix-It-All'. That very nameplate was in bold, and red, and looked seriously tacky atop a three storey, brick and mortar building. It was old, and looked way out of place alongside the rest of the chic buildings in the shopping street.

"Hey Rex! Mrs!" a guy called, coming out the front door, waving a hand.

Circe smiled before driving off, leaving Rex in the driveway, nervousness suddenly coming in tenfold. He stared up the building like a kid who's taken on more than he could chew. With Circe gone, there was no one he could depend on for support – not unless the company didn't mind an employee with sudden memory lapses that caused him to underperform all of a sudden.

 _Shit_ , why did he think he could do this?

"Damn, man! No offence, and I hope you don't take this the wrong way," his colleague started, hooking an arm over Rex's neck and dragging him along into the building, "But no matter how many times I see your Mrs, damn I still find her beautiful! You're one lucky guy, you know that?"

Rex felt a lopsided smile creeping onto his face.

"Yea, I know."

He meant that literally, since right up till yesterday, he was somehow convinced he and Circe were never meant to be.

The hours flew by quickly as Rex busied himself. He rode with a team of two other guys in a tacky, company van to three homes, answering to requests of fixing several home appliances. Rex's worries were more or less quickly allayed with the fact that he was indeed pretty adept at handling his work, even though it was literally the first for him attempting to repair anything. At the end of his shift when they brought him back to the company block, they even commented how he was on double mode that day, finishing up his part faster than the rest by a mile.

Rex just laughed it off with a joke. Of course, he couldn't tell them about using his nanites abilities as the secret weapon to help him. He never actually tried feeding his bots into non-living, metal components until that day, so he was surprised himself, that his little bots were so helpful in the overhaul. Just deep concentration and retuning, and somehow, comprehension would just come to him, hands moving on his own in the fixing, without him having to doubt himself.

As for blending into conversations, Rex learnt from his mistake the day before, and was careful not to say anything. He only nodded along to the conversations and laughed at appropriate times. He mostly stayed on alert with listening ears, catching and absorbing as much information as he could, like their names, and bits of information they dropped along the way, like previous jobs, or other colleagues, their boss, some clients, and some parts of their family life.

All in all, work went on without a hitch and was pretty smooth, so Rex was feeling pretty good about himself that he hadn't made a mistake, until he shaped shifted his legs into his usual hover bike in order to get home.

Speeding off, he didn't see his colleagues staring after him in the driveway with jaws hanging wide open in shock.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

When Rex got home, he basically took over the nanny's duties. She looked to be a very prim, middle aged woman, older than him, and looked a bit worn out by the time he arrived.

"Where's Riaena?"

"Well, napping, like usual," she answered.

Rex nodded, and ticked off from the briefing Circe told him that morning. Raiena had mid-afternoon naps after tea break, which was right about this time.

"How was she earlier?" he asked tentatively, worrying slightly if she was still affected by yesterday's horrible events.

The nanny just gave a hearty laugh. "Oh you know, boisterous, as usual!"

Rex became relieved.

"Good. And dinner?"

"On the stove. Just heat it up later and it's good to eat."

Rex nodded again and smiled, thanking her before letting her off. Then he went upstairs and crept into the room to check up on his girl. She was fast asleep, looking like a tiny angel, Rex couldn't help but find himself drawn to her. He quietly and gently laid down next to her, propping his elbow up on the pillow, looking down at her intently. The more he stared, the more he saw her resemblance to him, and decided he really liked what he saw.

Just imagine, _him, a dad_. He never thought this day would come. His thoughts froze, suddenly realizing his sentiments echoed for someone else – someone he was close with, whom he just found out was a dad too. It felt like it should be momentous news, and Rex was incredibly happy to hear it, but somehow, he just couldn't picture who the lucky parents were. He only knew that they were people important to him. He frowned, sitting up, trying to focus his thoughts, but gave up soon enough, since nothing else came to mind.

He got out of bed, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. Since he can't recall his past, maybe he should focus on building memories of the present. Like familiarizing himself in his own house. Since Riaena was still asleep, he took the chance to explore the place, checking out every cabinet and shelf, making mental notes of where they kept things, and taking stock of what they had. Mid-way through, he suddenly recalled Circe had yet to pass him his orange jacket. No problem – he could hunt for it on his own.

He found the storage room beneath the stairs and after some time of digging around every box, he found it! He held it up happily, flicking it a couple of times to lessen the wrinkles. It looked as he remembered, just that the orange shade looked somewhat… faded? He shrugged, surmised that it must be because it had been stuffed away for too long. He just needed to wash it and air it out a bit. He tucked it under his armpit and went back to putting away the box he found it from, when a white card with his name on it, tucked into the breast pocket of a jacket, caught his attention.

Rex picked out the card gingerly and read:

 _Rex, for remembrance – H._

He frowned.

 _Who was H?_ And Remembrance of _who?_

He picked up the formal suit blazer and eyed the dark green color with distaste. Who in the world wears a green blazer? Yet something nagged at him, that it was pretty important – that whoever wore this, was important to him. Unfortunately, his memory was a blitz, and nothing came to mind.

Tentatively, he thought he caught the sounds of Riaena calling for him. So he just quickly left the storeroom, grabbing both jackets with him. He told himself he'll wash both and ask Circe about it when she comes back – likely she'd be the only one who could shed light on this.

He laid both jackets messily on the couch and was in time to see Riaena rubbing her eyes at the top of the stairs.

"Hey Kiddo," he felt himself smile. She looked so adorable half-awake, thick hair messy and tangled, fanning around her face like a tiny lioness.

Riaena beamed when she noticed him.

"Daddy!" she chirped happily, suddenly wide awake, and started down the steps. To his horror, she tripped and half rolled, and might have rolled all the way down if he wasn't fast enough to whip out his nanites into extendable arms, catching her before the damage was too great.

He breathed heavily into her head when he retracted his arms, squeezing her little body inside his chest.

"Jesus, Riaena! Be careful! Don't scare me like that!"

Riaena was shaking and shrieking with laughter, as if she hadn't even realized she had a near accident.

"Again, Daddy! Do that again!"

Rex ignored her playful demands, checking her head, combing through her wild hair to search for bumps.

"Did you hit yourself?"

"No, I didn't," Riaena informed, giggling.

"Are you sure?" Rex eyed her worriedly, "Then does it hurt anywhere?"

"No," she insisted, eyes wide and twinkling.

Rex heaved a huge sigh in relief.

"That's good, Christ I nearly had a heart attack, you know? Be more careful next time," Rex told her.

She became somber and nodded like she understood.

"Good," Rex nodded then put her down on the floor and panted his hands on his hips, "So, what do we normally do at home together? Before Mommy comes back?"

Riaena blinked at him, and he blinked back.

"I wanna play spinning man!" she suddenly exclaimed, throwing her hands up, bouncing up and down excitedly.

Rex beamed.

"So you're not afraid?" he asked to confirm.

"No! It was fun! Do it again!"

Rex beamed wider. Now, that was his girl.

"Okay, but this stays a secret between the two of us, okay?"

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex and Riaena had such a blast, speeding around the lawn and up and down the stairs on a modified, smaller, hover bike that was less bulky that could do tighter turns. Her peals of laughter rang through the whole house, sounding like bells, and highly infectious, giving Rex stitches from laughing so much.

They had so much fun that Rex forgot to watch the time, and didn't realize Circe had returned home till he heard her shouting his name.

 _Damn! Busted!_

Rex collapsed his nanite constructs and came to a stop right before her, with Riaena safely in his arms.

"Hey Circe, welcome back," he grinned nervously to a frowning Circe.

She had her arms crossed, feet tapping the doormat at the front door.

"What are you doing, Rex? I thought after Sunday's episode, you should know better than to play with her so roughly!"

"Hey, my Rex-ride is completely safe!" Rex defended indignantly, "You used to ride it all the time yourself."

Circe looked like she wanted to argue back, but Riaena – the little angel – spoke up.

"It's alright, Mommy, we'll be careful, we promise!"

Circe sighed heavily, pinching her brows.

"Alright," Circe relented, but continued to warn, "Just as long as you keep it within the house, you got me? Make sure no one outside sees you."

That didn't sound right to him.

"Why not?"

Circe frowned, glare warning him not to ask further. Rex decided not to press, and decided to keep quiet too about the earlier fact that he came home on the road on his hover bike.

"Alright, hungry for dinner?" Rex asked instead.

"Yea, famished, actually, I hadn't the time to take my lunch," Circe shared, sounding tired.

"No, that's bad for you."

Circe shrugged.

"Part of my job, can't be helped."

They chatted for a bit while heating up the food, Rex asking questions about her work, curious to know what it was like. They stopped when Circe turned her attention to Riaena, playing and coddling her. Rex smiled, feeling blissful whilst he watched from the side, the other half of his attention on distributing the portion into their plates and setting dinner down for the three of them. It seemed like the perfect, family life.

Even without the rest of his memory, he thought it might not be so bad just making new ones from here on. He was sure he could live with this, no problem at all, _if_ he could ignore that strange, unsettling feeling constantly gnawing at the back of his head.

After dinner and washing up the dishes, Circe started on the laundry. Rex shooed her to bath instead, joking that he should be the one doing the work at home, earning a big smile of approval and a light peck from her. She jolted however, when she noticed the two jackets Rex found earlier, draped over his arms.

Noticing her reaction, he wondered if there was something wrong.

"Hey Circe, look what I found! My jacket!" he said ecstatically, holding up his orange jacket in front of him.

Circe gave a bland smile, not sharing his enthusiasm.

"I also found this green blazer and it had a note. Was wondering if you knew anything about that."

Circe looked positively ill, gaze switching from him to the blazer and back again, lips pulled taut.

"No, I'm not too sure about it," Circe finally replied, giving Rex all the confidence of Pinocchio talking.

"Right, never mind then, must not be anything important," Rex replied blandly, emotions quickly heading for a downward spiral.

So much for thinking he could get on comfortably with his memory loss. How could he, when his wife was obviously hiding things from him? Despite his trepid thoughts, he masked it carefully, not wanting Circe to go through any more hurt.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

After two whole days of Rex-Ride and various other high speed constructs he turned himself into, Rex was ready to wave the white flag. Damn it was exhausting to keep up with Riaena. She was like this excitable bundle of energy that never seemed to run out of batteries. He had no idea how he had been able to handle it before.

Rex almost regretted convincing Circe he could handle Riaena on his own without the nanny. She had been worried and skeptical at first, wanting the nanny to be around for at least half a day, but eventually, she gave in, trusting him to manage just fine.

Rex was almost too happy to get to work, seeing it as a chance for a break, but alas, another part-timer called him at the last minute, begging to exchange shift days with him, so Rex was forced to cancel the nanny and was down to spending the full day with Riaena.

Riaena was again demanding him for 'Rex-Rides', but he eyed her wearily.

"No, no more Rex-Rides today– Daddy's flat and out of juice."

She was a little unhappy, but she lightened up soon enough. Unfortunately, she wouldn't stop trying to climb all over him like a squirrel investigating its tree.

Rex was exhausted just trying to keep her from falling and balancing her weight on his arms. He sighed. He definitely needed a break.

Remembering that Circe offered he could call her for SOS if he needed, he threw away his god damn 'Dad pride' and rang her, asking what he used to do to keep Riaena busy.

Circe laughed almost too much in a victorious manner.

"Just take her out. She's more mellow outside."

Rex did exactly that, but wrestled with dressing her like the way he did on the first day. Riaena demanded for a bandana, much to his puzzlement, but whatever, who was he to comment on the astute, fashion tastes of a young girl? He did his best digging for Circe's scarves, but she liked none of them. Weariness climbed upon him, as high as the pile of messy clothes all over the bedroom. Shit, he'd have to put all these back properly or Circe will be mad. In his urgency, he didn't see where he was throwing the clothes, and noticed a piece of clothing landed on Riaena when she complained.

Glancing at her, he saw that a pair of tiny, knitted shorts had fallen right atop her head. Eyeing it, Rex suddenly had an idea. He twirled the two legs of the pants and tied them together, making it a headscarf over her unruly hair. Riaena studied herself intently in the mirror for a few seconds, then beamed.

"I like it!" she declared, much to Rex's relief. Finally, they could get out of the house, after spending like an hour at his ordeal.

Rex cycled her to the nearby park by following the GPS – on a real, proper bicycle as they had one parked just at the porch, and not using any of his nanite construct. It was rather quiet mid-morning, since it was a work day for most people. However, there seemed to be a small, tuition center nearby, which accounted for most of the teenagers hanging around, seated in groups on the grass, or on the benches. It must be their break time, or they could be playing hooky. Either way, it didn't really matter. What took most of Rex's attention was how tamed Rianea was. Where she was a riot at home, hurtling around all over the place like a super-charged missile and screaming his ears off, here, she was as docile and as quiet as a swan, playing with her toys in one place meekly. The contrast was nearly too marveling.

Still, she couldn't leave him alone the whole time. She podded him in between, climbing up his legs on the bench and asking him to read to her. Rex complied happily, at least he was still seated and rested. And Riaena sounded so cute trying out the exercises in the nursery book, but failing hilariously. Twice she pointed at the picture of an elephant and called it a mouse. And she incorrectly identified a shark as a dolphin, and a dolphin as a mermaid, and oh, a whale as a submarine. She even called an airplane an eagle. Then when Rex pointed at the image of a bike, half cracking up in stitches, she beamed widely and said with a hundred percent confidence.

"That's Daddy!"

Rex couldn't help but crack up completely.

That's when he felt his nanites kicking, instinct sending him folding his broad form over Riaena's much smaller body, shielding her from an incoming soccer ball. It hit his back with a force that might send a normal man with black and blues for three days. For Rex however, it was small matter, bouncing off him harmlessly.

"Holy crap!" came the shouts and curses from some guys. "It hit him!"

Rex turned back when he was sure the coast was clear, and felt like the ball had hit him a second time – except there was no ball, just a young chap, with crystal blue eyes and sun gold, blonde hair.

"Hey Mr, sorry about that, you alright?" the teenager asked, but Rex stared back mutely, mind suddenly spinning in on itself over the familiarity of this youngster. His friends came up quickly, apologizing profusely, jolting Rex.

"No worries, it's okay guys, I'm alright. At least my little girl is safe."

"Yea," the blonde started, eyes widening with marvel, "It was lucky you blocked it. You were pretty incredible – I thought you didn't see it."

Rex smiled, and shrugged.

"I didn't. But it's Dad's instincts."

The teen grinned, and Rex didn't know why, but it caused a strange twinge in his chest, reminding him of someone, but Rex just couldn't remember who. It was strange, but seeing the teen plagued him for the rest of the day – not exactly the teen himself, per say, but the other person whom the teen reminded him of. Still no matter how hard he dug, all he could picture was blonde hair and blue eyes framing a blurry face.

Maybe if he could just somehow, imagine the teen being a couple of years older, like his age, with a higher cheekbone, and lips that was quick to curl twistedly into a cynical or taunting smile. But his eyes, were always warm, bright like the sun, cool like cerulean waters, flashy like a glade of ice if he was rubbed the wrong way – but mostly, it was welcoming. And what else? He was definitely broader than the teen, but could still be considered of medium stature, but fit, extremely fit, and with skin, ghostly pale, almost haunting. Rex shivered, realizing his thoughts were almost running askew. He didn't know why his heart raced, just thinking about him, and there was a dull ache, as if it hurt that he couldn't even remember such an important person.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Circe did overtime, so she returned home much later that night. By then, Riaena was already sleeping, and Rex was just hanging up the clothes after the wash cycle.

They exchanged a quick peck in greeting, but before Circe went back into the kitchen for her late dinner, she frowned to see Rex untying a piece of shorts.

"Why was that tangled?"

"Oh, I tied it, like a bandana, for Riaena."

Circe gave him an appalled stare.

"What? You let your daughter walk around all day outside with a pair of shorts on her head?"

"Huh? Well, but she liked it," Rex defended but eagle eyes bore into him, so he quickly went on, "She didn't want any of your scarves. And besides, it really didn't look bad. It was cute on her. You couldn't tell it was shorts."

"Still, you don't put shorts on Riaena's head!" she exploded, eyes flashing like a lightning cloud, with tons of flyaway hair escaped from her bun, making her look rather scary.

"And you don't show her your freaky little nanites or take her on dangerous, high speed killer rides!"

Rex was stunned by her outburst, hurt too. But he chalked up it to the exhaustion of her day and the stress of his out-of-character behavior. He kept mum to prevent it from becoming a serious argument. He was so mind boggled that day, he didn't have the energy to argue back anyway, so he pretended he heard nothing, continuing with the laundry quietly.

Circe huffed away out their laundry room, and didn't appear again until she crawled into bed next to him an hour later.

"Rex," she whispered at his back, "I'm sorry." She kissed his cheek.

Rex felt his jaw tighten.

"For?"

She took a deep breath.

"Saying those horrible things. I was just peeved about the pants. Really. And then I let my stress at work get the better of me."

Rex turned over to accept her peace offering, somehow kissing her full on the lips. Rex breathed deeply, letting the warmth of their kiss run through him and sooth his earlier, ruffled feathers.

"Okay," he grinned, pulling back, "I'm not mad anymore."

She smiled, eyes brightening, then she shifted her weight and crept over so her body was above him, legs sprawled next to his. Rex swallowed, suddenly nervous, heart skipping a beat when he sensed where this was going. It felt like ages since he has been this intimate with her. Then she leaned in for another kiss and Rex nearly couldn't breathe.

It had been too long. He caressed her cheek gently, remembering the kisses he shared with her – the only one person in the world. Suddenly, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed, faceless phantom popped back into his head, and instinctively, he just knew.

 _No,_ _she wasn't the only one._

He kissed this other person too, several times. Mostly for fun, just innocent pecks, though he was clueless why they got to that, but then there was this one time – suddenly, he was remembering the other's hot tongue, and questing wet lips, and the sound of waves lapping on a beach under a moonlit sky. There was something about the fervor he could feel upon the recollection, that made his blood rush all the way down south in a snap. Rex jerked and pulled from Circe instantly, perplexed and guilty. He couldn't kiss her while someone else was popping up in his head, especially since the _cause_ of his erection was – shockingly – due to the nameless, and faceless intruder.

Circe was a little surprised, but she said nothing, and didn't press for anything further. She just turned to the other side, back facing Rex, softly wishing him goodnight.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The morning after, started the same as the previous days. But feeling a bit guilty over last night and wanting to start Circe's day on a good note, Rex woke a little earlier to prepare her breakfast. She came into the kitchen with a show of following her nose, sniffing the air in an adorable manner.

"I smell something cooking," she smiled at him.

Rex gave a lopsided smile.

"Sorry, I'm not the best cook, since this is my first time attempting a sunny side up and pancakes."

Circe's brows shot up.

"Hmm, your first time cooking since your memory lapse and already you're attempting such a difficult dish? I'm surprised the kitchen hasn't burnt down yet," she teased, coming up behind his hips to plant a kiss at his neck.

Rex crooked a brow, pondering at her words.

"Say, tell me, what did I used to make for breakfast?"

"Oh, nothing special, just bruschetta, poached eggs, quiche, poached salmon, brownies, and sometimes pizza."

Rex's brows might have flown off his face.

"Wow, was I some kind of master chef?"

She laughed.

"Don't worry, you'll get there soon enough."

She disappeared out the kitchen, then came back properly dressed in her suit. Rex looked over admiringly, loving how immaculate and smart she looked. The only thing that clashed with her whole outfit was the gaudy, chunky white bracelet on her left wrist. To come to think it, Rex realized she had been wearing it every day, all the time, even when she goes for bath.

When he pointed it out to her, suggesting she should lose it, she gave him an eagle eye and laughed, dismissing him.

"You're hilarious."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex was lucky that day. Riaena was glued to the television that morning, apparently hooked on a couple of the children's shows, such that she did not hound him at all. It gave Rex the opportunity to explore the kitchen, and his cooking skills. The last few days, all he made were sandwiches, and he getting bored of that.

He dug around and pulled out the ingredients for her breakfast, that was the next simplest to eggs and toast. Much to his delight, Riaena was in love with Marconi and cheese – which was also his favorite, like father like daughter - finishing everything quickly and without fuss. She retreated back to the television as soon as she was done, making Rex curious, so he went out to join her, and filed it in his head that the kids program that morning were "Action Thursdays". Meaning, they were all action packed cartoons, and was enjoyable even for Rex. There were some pretty sweet animation of a kid in an orange jacket much like his, battling mutated monsters with his robot form which he could call at will. Rex frowned as he watched on, wondering why he found the cartoon so familiar. Something in the show resembled things he thought might have happened to him, but again the mental fuzz was in the way, preventing him from being completely sure.

In any case, Riaena was enjoying the show a lot, and Rex was distracted watching her reaction. She was this animated stunt girl, kicking and punching the air fiercely, mimicking the protagonist. It brought a smile to his lips, happy that he had such an energetic, tough kid. But in her excitement, she accidently smacked the TV remote off the armchair of the couch, and it flew to the side, buttons pressed against the wall. The channel changed at that point, to a news report, with a big blue headline running across the screen, with the words in bold _'_ **Providence** _.'_

The world suddenly snapped into sudden clarity.

"Fuck!" Rex cried aloud, shooting up from the couch, staring at the screen with his mouth running dry and his chest tightening with trepidation.

 _"_ _Now, the latest update in last Saturday's headline news, Homeland Security has confirmed that Providence have found new leads on the robot rampage…"_

The news footage replayed a scene of chaos – dozens of bronze robots were tearing up one of the cities, with Providence black and white clad troops combating them in a hard fight. In the midst of it all, he spied that _unmistakable_ blond head bravely leading the foray.

It came back, everything – rushing into his head in an overwhelming, painful flood, making the room spin as his memories filed themselves in order, swiftly giving back the history he knew.

Every relationship he had – his Providence family, and his teammates and friends, his brother Caesar, and his best friend, Noah. Every mission, every event that happened right up to his fight with Time-Meta EVO at the Abysus.

He finally remembered all of it. Without a doubt, it was clear in his mind now, how things should be. That everything he went through the last four days, _shouldn't have happened._

"Daddy?" Rex jolted and looked down at her confused gaze. He felt a pang in his chest, disorientated from the truth that suddenly disconnected him from her. _She wasn't really his daughter._

"Sorry, it's nothing. Here, let me help you change back the channel," Rex forced himself to keep a calm tone, though his voice still shook.

"Stay here and watch your shows, alright?"

He didn't need to tell her, for she was already glued to it, giving him the respite he needed to straighten things out. Forcing himself to calm down instead of going into a panic attack, he grabbed the phone and remained in the living room so he could keep an eye on Riaena.

Rex dialed for Six's number, but received an operator claiming it was an unused number. He dialed Providence control lines next, but again, a dead tone. Even Holiday's private line. He breathed heavily, still willing himself to go about this rationally. It figures, as security protocols go, these things were changed frequently to prevent information leak and to protect the privacy and safety of the staff and their families. He reminded himself it was a normal practice for them.

But then again, if this was a world that was warped from what he knew, it could mean they might all have different numbers to begin with. So he searched for Providence public lines through the internet, but much to his dismay, his search came up empty. Absolutely nothing – he couldn't find them anywhere. There was no mention of them at all at any site.

 _That can't be._ Providence always had a public helpline and response page. That was how they connected with the public.

He hunched over, mind scrambling till it came to the one person Rex could always count on – he called Noah.

The phone rang in forever, then cut off. Rex dialed again, waiting impatiently, then his line got cut off again, vexing him. Undeterred, he tried again, and to his relief, it went through.

" _Noah!_ Thank god, is that you?" Rex cried, "Listen, I'm Rex."

The other line was silent, except for faint breathing, making Rex anxious.

"Hello? Noah, could you hear me?"

Again, Noah didn't reply, or maybe, it wasn't Noah at all.

"Uh, sorry, Noah, are you there? Or, you're someone else? I'm Rex," he repeated.

" _I know,_ " finally, came Noah's reply, sounding heavy.

Rex gave a heavy sigh – he could cry in relief.

"My god, Noah! Shit, it's good you picked. I _couldn't_ reach anyone else. You have no idea, but something crazy is happening to me. I was just battling Gravity-Meta and Time-Meta last week, but shit happened. Time-Meta must have done something, because the next thing I knew, I woke up and found that I was married to Circe, and we have a kid."

There was silence for the longest time.

"Noah?" Rex prodded.

Then, heavy breathing.

" _Fuck off_ with your jokes, Rex," Noah's reply was hard when it came, tone brutal and unlike anything that Rex had heard his best friend use on him, "I was the one getting shit screwed with Time-Meta's army last week. And lord, who doesn't know that you'd ditched us just so you could tie the knot and live in _happy fucking la la land_."

Then he promptly cut the line.

Rex stared at his phone dumbly for a long time after Noah's cold response, even after the end tone stopped beeping. Confused and terrified, Rex couldn't move, especially not since his best friend had confirmed the impossible had happened.

Time-Meta EVO had somehow _changed_ the timeline.

 **To be continued…  
**

* * *

Side note:

Thanks for review Yanne. =D

And sorry to others for the crazy twist and agony. I will make it up... the story gets better - I promise!


	37. Tormenting Realities

**Chapter 37: Tormenting Realities**

(Rex uncovers devastating news, one that rocked and shook his entire world.)

* * *

Rex staggered a bit, the terrifying discovery too much to take in. His breaths now came in short pants, no longer able to fight back the panic and fear gripping him. Just exactly how much has changed? A quick check of the calendar on his mobile made his head spin even more. It hadn't occurred to him before to check the dates, or even if he had seen it, the time gap didn't register because of his memory spaz. But now that his brain has righted itself, Rex was swallowing gulps of air in terror like a fish out of water.

It was _seven_ years into the future. What the hell happened here in the seven years or the years since he and Circe married?

Only one last person left to call.

"Circe, I need to check in with Providence. Do you know the number to call?"

" _Excuse me?_ " Circe's shock and anxiety could be well heard.

"Rex, what's gotten into you? _Why_ do you need to contact them? Did something happen?"

Rex warred inwardly a bit, wondering if he should tell her where he came from and how they _really_ never married. But he decided otherwise, knowing he was too perplexed with the situation to explain properly.

"I just need to check on something."

He got Circe's distressed breathing for response.

" _Circe_ ," Rex prompted more urgently.

"This can't be happening!" she near exploded, "First you lose your memory and now you're totally acting out of sorts –" Circe rambled in tones stretched thin, words sounding off huge alarms in his head. Everything that happened over the last few days clearly showed the most important thing missing from Rex's life – Providence. Not that he didn't appreciate married life– but why was he a house husband rather than out there tackling crazy situations? Why was he working as an average, household repairman instead of reporting to Providence for duty?

"Circe," Rex cut her off, tones sharp and wary, "Why are you acting like this is a big deal? Me calling Providence shouldn't be anything out of the ordinary, right?"

"No, this can't be. You're being completely abnormal – you've _never_ got in touch with them or asked to, in all these years!" she sounded shaky now, distraught, "That's it, I'm taking you to the hospital. You must have some brain damage, or impairment, that's making you act all different."

Circe's frenzy whipped Rex's own even further, making him lose his patience.

" _Circe!_ Stop, there's nothing wrong with me," Rex refuted in an exasperated tone, no longer able to mask his torrid emotions, "It's everything wrong with _this_ timeline. I'm seven years younger than I should be, and maybe even before that, things had changed and they're _not_ as how they are."

"You're not making any sense!"

"It means that I'm _not_ supposed to be here! I come from some other – _ugh_ -" a frustrated grunt escaped him, not able to find the right words.

"I don't understand, I don't understand anything," came her shaking tone.

Rex sighed frustratedly.

"Yea, me neither. Which is why, I _really_ need to get Providence."

"No, no, no," her cry of turmoil made it worst for Rex, slamming against his chest and echoing the equal tromping of his own internal thoughts, "You can't. You've _washed off_ all ties with them – you shouldn't go back to them."

Rex dropped his phone right then. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. She might as well have told him to shoot himself.

And the way the conversation went, he knew Circe wasn't going to help him. _No sweat,_ he'll go to Providence base on his own – but before that, he made sure the nanny arrived to take over looking after Riaena before he left. Whether history truly gave him a daughter or not, Rex at least knew he had to do the responsible thing to ensure she wasn't left alone.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

He rocketed over to Providence base on supersized turbine wings, blasting them at full speeds. Despite his prowess with his nanites constructs, Rex had a shaky flight, or it could be that too much chaos was churning within him, making his whole body tremble.

 _Faster, faster!_

He was nearing, swooshing over miles of pale yellow, sun-baked canyons in a secluded area, far off from the rest of society. The familiar sight soothed him for the first time in his life, never feeling so grateful or so relieved to be near Providence grounds.

Then there, coming out the shortcut through a narrow rift between two hardline cliffs, he spied headquarters, looking thin and tiny like a needle, which quickly grew as he approached, into a rising, sword of light, pointing upwards at the sky.

However, his relief was short-lived. Landing on grounds, it was clear to see the building was empty, walls worn and dirty, with moss growing over, looking like it had been vacated for a few years. Shock couldn't begin to describe how he felt.

Providence couldn't be gone. He desperately held onto some vestiges of logic, forcing himself to be calm enough to think. He saw Noah and Providence on the news a little over an hour ago, so they were obviously still in operation. Perhaps they just changed location – maybe the current location was compromised. So then, what now? Without a lead or clue how to find them, what was he to do?

Hearing his phone beep for the hundredth time, Rex sighed and ran defeated hands through his hair, finally picking up Circe's call, whom he had ignored all through his flight over.

" _Rex, please_ ," she begged, voice quivering, "Please, come back, Rex, we still have our daughter."

She must have called the Nanny since he wouldn't pick up, and guessed that he ran off to find Providence.

Rex was too loaded with a sense of helplessness and powerlessness to be caring of Circe's plea. However, he bit his lip and forced himself to show her some patience – after all, he did feel a bit bad for abruptly ending their call and selfishly zipping off instead of staying with Riaena.

"Look, Circe, in the first place, I didn't say I wasn't going to come back. I just need to clear some things, and get some answers."

"No, you lie, you're back to how you used to, way back before we married."

Sniffles came from the other line, telling Rex that she was crying.

"Circe, _please_ , this is important to me," Rex tried to explain, exasperated and feeling guilt, from hearing her sobs, crawl from his ears down into his chest.

"So is your family, but you're going away again, leaving me alone, like you used to."

"I won't, look, this will be fast. I'll be home before you know it."

"No, I want you home now! God knows how you'll be stuck with Providence forever. That's what you used to do, gone for hours, or days, or weeks, disappearing!" she sounded crazed and livid, and Rex could see her looking mad.

"And once you're gone, I wouldn't even know if you'll come back. All I can do is worry – worry, worry, _worry!_ "

Rex threw his arms in the air for a bit, needing to be far from the phone to draw an exasperated huff. When he next brought back the phone to his face, he tried to placate her and soothe her worries.

"Of course I will, Circe. I'll be just like any other regular dad – we go to work, we come home."

" _Other_ regular dads don't fight crazy machines or super beings, Rex!"

"Don't say it like I'm not gonna make it back. I'm infallible, remember? I'm the all great Nanite King!" Rex tried to joke.

"The chances are too big! Even Six! You used to say all the time too that he was invincible! But he –" Circe abruptly stopped, as if she had said something she shouldn't.

Alarm bells went off in Rex's head. His heart stopped for just a moment.

 _Six? Something happened to six?_

"What were you gonna say? _Something_ about Six?"

Nothing, no words, just shaky breathing.

Rex felt every fibre drawn into a taut line, like a rubber band on the verge of snapping. That jacket – the damn green suit he found in the storeroom just yesterday… Rex's insides throbbed. In sickening terror and anguish.

 _No. No. No._ He was screaming inside, begging and imploring. But the words on the card surfaced to his mind, lettering clear and crisps: ' _Rex, for remembrance – H.'_

Hell, was burning in his brain.

"What. Happened. To. Six?" he grinded his teeth.

Circe remained staunchly silent. She didn't dare say.

Rex looked to the blinding sun and swallowed a big gulp of air to try to quell the rush of bad feeling churning within his gut.

"Fine, I'll ask Noah."

"No!" Circe screamed, but he cut the line.

Five calls this time, before Noah decided to answer.

"What's up, joker?" Noah tone was equally cold and hard as when he picked up earlier.

"Noah," Rex skipped all the pleasantries, "What happened to Six?"

The short pause was a momentous build up to explosion on the other line.

" _Are you fucking kidding me?_ You are asking me this now? What, you just fucking woke up from some mega shock and realized only now, that Six is fucking _gone_?"

It was Rex's turn to be silent. Except for his heavy breathing that matched Noah's.

The endless canyons swung sharply on all angles as his vision spun. Rex nearly collapsed, legs suddenly weak, but he fell onto one knee instead, and braced the floor with his palms.

 _Six is…_

Rex squeezed his eyes shut, willing for it to be untrue. Wishing that he hadn't heard it. But Noah wouldn't lie about something like that. So when he finally found the words to reply, he could only croak in a strained, broken voice.

" _Show me, please_."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The tears only found their way out upon kneeling on the cold, hard cement of Six's grave. They fell pitter patter like raindrops, adding dark spots on the ash grey stone.

The noon sun was still hot and beat down on his back, but all that Rex felt, was cold, freezing cold and chill of a loved one disappearing and leaving his side without his knowing. Hours must have passed since his knees became numb. Rex didn't care.

It was a shock to find that Six was already six feet under. Rex promptly collapsed on his knees, staring and unmoving at the headstone that had Six's name in bold, engraved onto it.

 _In beloved memory, a hero, a soldier, a leader, a friend, an anchor._

His death date marked nine years ago. How could that fucking be?

 _How could I have let this happen?_ If Rex had been around, he would die before Six did – he wouldn't let shit happen to Six.

A snap in a twig, the soft trudge of boots on the gravel path, halting just steps behind him, told Rex that Noah had finally arrived. Since telling Rex the address to where he would find Six, Rex zipped over on his turbine wings so he reached earlier.

"How…" Rex started, swallowing hard, half turning his head sideways to address Noah, " _did this happen_?"

Noah exhaled deeply and loudly, and threw a short, white stick onto the ground before he stubbed the embers with his boots. _A cigarette?_ It took Rex about two seconds to realize. _Since when did Noah smoke?_

"You don't remember?" Noah sounded suspicious, voice tight. Rex could hear all his anger and disbelief beneath his stretched voice. Rex felt his chest tighten further, like his lungs became constricted and he couldn't breathe.

Rex shook his head woodenly, head still downcast. He dare not meet Noah's eyes, fearing to see eyes of anger and hate as harsh as how he sounds, directed at him.

"Not that I can't remember. But I really don't know what happened. It was like I told you, this morning. One moment I was fighting alongside you, and the next, I was in Circe's bed, with a daughter on bouncing up and down the house."

"That's fucking retarded!" Noah's snarl jolted Rex, as it was so venomous, it took him by surprise, "You can't be fighting together with me, because you left providence. You gave up the fight. You stopped protecting others because you wanted to only protect your idyll dream. It's because of you, that Six was gone."

Rex squeezed his eyeballs shut, wishing it was all a nightmare. Noah was blaming Rex and it hurt, because Noah would never blame Rex so venomously like this. Something had happened in this past – something that Rex did or didn't do but he fucking didn't know what that was.

"What did I do?"

The moment those words left his mouth, he felt Noah's heavy fist connecting with his jaw, sending him twisting sideways and sprawled face down into the dirt. Rex coughed and sputtered, shocked more than anything.

" _You didn't turn up_ –that's what you did!" Noah bellowed overhead, "Providence kept calling. _I_ kept calling. But nothing. You ignored us. Cut us off -"

"That's not fucking possible!" Rex roared into the ground, losing all his cool, losing his head, which was might as well have been lost already because he could hardly make sense of these crazy things happening. He started shaking, bracing his elbows on the gravel, leaning his heavy head on the rough ground.

Sobs racked through him, an overwhelming sense of lost, of confusion, of disbelief, of anger, over this reality that shouldn't be his. It poured out of him that instant, that torrential storm that had already been gathering inside as he struggled with the sudden loss of Six. He banged the gravel with the underside of his fists, striking over and over with maddening need to release the hurricane spinning from his chest to his limbs.

"It's fucking impossible. None of this makes any sense. This shouldn't happen. _Shouldn't happen at all_!" Rex kept chanting over and over as he slammed his fists on the ground, not caring that his skin has already split from cuts, scraped by the uneven, rough gravel. If he willed it, he could have made his fist as hard as steel, and skin as tough as leather. But his defence nanites were slack now.

"You are putting up an awfully good show, for a _bastard_ who had fucking abandoned his friends," Noah accused pointedly, voice equally thick with emotion.

There was sound of flint, of a lighter clicking. And the deep sound of inhalation. Rex guessed that Noah had lighted another cigarette, taking a deep puff.

 _To calm his anger?_ Rex wasn't sure. Only that this side of Noah was strange and foreign to him.

"You never smoke," Rex pointed out shakily, still unable to wrap his head on these new revelations.

"Well I do, now."

"And I'm not supposed to be married to Circe, or have a kid, and Six is _not_ supposed to be dead," Rex went on. "And I _have not_ quit Providence. I wouldn't. Wouldn't even think of it."

"You did. For Circe. She convinced you, at Six's funeral."

Rex took a sharp intake of breath, feeling like he was going to asphyxiate.

"No, _impossible_. I wouldn't have left, not even if she begged me. I would have avenged Six."

" _Really?_ " Noah raised his voice again, sounding incredulous, "I can't believe you have the fucking gall to act the fucking anamnestic victim. I'm tired, Rex. There's still alot of shit at Providence that needs to be done. I needa go."

On hearing that, Rex became gripped with anxiety with the need to go back to the only place he belonged. To check it out and see what terrifying changes had taken place in this nightmare.

"HQ, what happened to it?" Rex asked, "Is Holiday there? Bobo? And White Knight? Take me with you." Rex started to get up, pushing one knee off the ground first.

But he froze when he felt the hard barrel of a gun at the back of his head.

" _You_ , are not Rex," Noah crazily declared.

* * *

 ** _To be continued…._**


	38. Troubling Paradox

**Chapter 38: Troubling Paradox**

(The nightmare continues…)

* * *

"Noah..." Rex started slowly, "I _am_ Rex."

"Who sent you?" Noah's tone was threatening, pushing his head hard down onto the ground.

"Noah! Get a grip, it's me. Rex Salazar, Nanite Master, EVO freak!"

"Look like him, maybe, but god knows someone made a perfect android clone that is you."

To prove his authenticity, Rex shape shifted an arm into his giant sword, but it was blasted by Noah's gun with a resounding bang that hammered his heart and eardrums.

Noah had a shotgun, and since Rex didn't strengthen his construct, the force of the ammunition and the close distance made a clean hole right through Rex's sword, measuring about twice the size of his fist.

If that had been Rex's head, he would have died.

Rex winced, not from pain, but from Noah's lack of love and trust. Noah has become hard. The Noah Rex knew, would never, ever _shoot_ at him.

"Identical abilities too huh, whoever made you is a fucking genius."

"Yea, he is. My brother is the top nanite scientist in the world."

"Smart alec, aren't you?" Noah grunted, "Won't be talking so much once I bring you back dead and we tear you up, and see how you tick."

 _Bring me back dead? See how I tick?_

Those words riled Rex, and in an instant he flared.

As fast as lightning, he willed his nanites to charge out from his back, forming octopus-like arms as extended limbs, wrapping Noah up in a cocoon and crawling into his weapon to render it faulty.

Noah shouted curses and struggled in futile against Rex's tight constricts.

Rex ignored Noah's struggle, even as it pains him. Slowly, he turned around whilst his constructs held Noah at steady. Rex was supposedly all powerful, and should look like every bit an ominous being. But he couldn't feel all the more weaker and helpless the moment he met those cold, cerulean eyes. So hard and biting, Rex felt a sharp pain his chest, on the left side where his heart was. Someone might as well had thrown an icy javelin and staked it through his organ. Because that was how he felt.

Noah looked the same, as picture perfect as he always was, except that he was a vision of anger and hatred, deep scowl plastered over.

And he looked older, just subtly, somehow Rex could tell. It was weird, but its like there were a couple of years added onto Noah's face. His jawline was harder, and he looked slightly more gaunt in the lower cheek, so it made his upper cheekbones look more pronounced. But perhaps even more than the years, Noah looked aged by experiences. He looked weary, worn down, subtle scowl lines running faintly down the corner of his lips and brows like Six.

This was not _his_ Noah. Yet, he is. How could things have gone so wrong?

"Providence will be after you. I pre-arranged back up. If I'm not back within three hours, they will be after you – the Rex lookalike."

"Would a Rex lookalike know about your OCD?"

Noah snorted.

"Everyone knows about my OCD."

Rex raised a brow in surprise but was undeterred.

"Your mom always made us bacon with cheese every time I'm over," Rex tried again, and took a step forward. Noah barely raised a brow.

"Nice guess. But it's still novice detective work."

"Your favourite game play is side scrollers, even if they're old school."

Noah jerked a brow, but Rex wasn't sure if it was because Noah was surprised that he knew, or because Rex inched forward till they were nearly brushing noses.

" _Release me,_ clone," Noah said in a warning tone as he glared at Rex.

Rex paid his words no mind and continued on.

"You cried at the last episode of the last season of my favourite show and admitted it was the best in the world, though you usually can't stand soap operas."

"Last chance. Let. Me. Go."

"You're right handed, but you occasionally write with your left hand because you think it's cool to be dexterous in both."

"I'm warning you..."

Noah looked incensed, and dead serious that he would do something horrible if Rex didn't release his octopus grip..

But Rex paid his words no mind since he had rendered Noah immobile. He continued rattling off things about Noah that he was sure, only he would know. Things that would tell Noah that he was the real Rex.

Noah unfortunately, didn't seem convinced. His glare, if anything, intensified.

"C'mon, Noah, you can't be that dense. What do I have to say to convince you?" Rex finally lamented, exasperated.

"Nothing," Noah's tone was curt.

Then a sharp pain erupted in Rex's gut. On reflex he took a sharp intake of breath, gasping in shock, but it hurt when he did as the diaphragm muscles moved. His gaze moved down slowly, in a state of disbelief and reluctance to see how Noah was physically hurting him.

Noah had somehow pushed a dagger through his nanite arms, right into his stomach.

Rex forced himself to remain calm, and took shallow breaths as he studied the attack. Took him three seconds before he realized Noah's dagger was actually a sort of nanite disruptor.

Which explained why Noah could break though his hold and why his nanites never kicked into defense mode.

 _Fuck!_ It hurts like shit. But not as much as knowing Noah had stabbed him.

"You might as well stab me in the chest, Noah," Rex said hoarsely, fighting to stomach the pain as it hurt even to talk.

Noah crooked his head slightly and his brows deepened.

"Maybe later Robo," Noah flickered a gaze down, "-EVO," Noah corrected himself when he saw the blood trickling from where his weapon was still embedded- "when I get you back into Providence to check how you are made. But first, I need you asleep."

Noah lifted another arm, breaking off from his nanite constricts as easily like lifting an arm out of buried sand. He held another weapon that Rex was certain could knock him unconscious.

"Please," Rex begged the stubborn, cruel Noah, " _Believe me_. I'm the real deal."

"I'd sooner believe in Satan."

Rex gave a weak laugh, or rather, broken gasps of laughter bubbled out from him, abdomen screaming as his muscles clenched and grated against the dagger.

Rex had only one last piece of ace to save him.

"Actually, the Devil might not know everything. Like the part when we were sixteen," Rex licked his lips, staring at Noah dead straight in the eye, "we _masturbated,_ _together,_ in your living room."

Noah's brows jerked upward, clearly affected by that last sentence. A torrent of emotions flashed by his face so quickly that Rex was only able to pin those of shock, agitation and disbelief.

In any case, Rex's words should get to Noah. It should convince Noah now, more than anything. This was the deepest secret shared between them that no spy could have pried.

For a moment, guilt and a mix of extreme sadness passed over Noah's face. But then Noah activated his gadget anyway, sending a sound wave that ran through Rex's head, promptly knocking him out.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

When Rex woke, he had to shield his eyes against the overly blinding lights aimed at him.

"He's awake!"

Someone announced, and the words seemed to also echo inside Rex's head.

Rex groaned lightly, feeling awful, like a truck had run through him.

"Mijo?"

Rex jolted at that word. Only one person in the world would call him that.

Caesar appeared overhead, his head dancing amongst three spotlights.

Rex cradled his head to still the blurry images.

"Are you alright, Mijo?" Caesar asked as he helped Rex sit up.

Rex felt weak when he moved, like he was jelly, and was glad for the assistance.

"A little disoriented," Rex replied, shaking his head slightly to clear his head.

Caesar nodded.

"It's the electro-magnetic wave beam pulsor. It temporarily messes with the electric signals between synapses."

Caesar shined a torch into his eyes and did a few quick check up, firing off a few symptoms and observations to other scientists behind him.

"I think you'll find your vision slightly myopic, but don't worry, it's only temporary. It will take awhile for the effects to wear off and you will be fine after that."

Rex nodded lightly, half listening to what Caesar had said. He really only understood half of it. He closed his eyes and willed his headache to go away. There was tension between his brows when he tried to focus his double vision. So he leaned back against the cushy pillow and bed rest, eyes shut and breathing slowly and deeply.

Then he groaned, feeling a faint jab at his stomach. And he remembered Noah had stabbed him.

Caesar caught him glancing down at the dressing pad, fingers brushing against it.

"Don't worry Mijo, the wound isn't deep. Noah took care to avoid your organs. And we dressed your wound to stop the bleeding. In fact, at your recovery rate, you should be completely healed within two days."

The sound of double doors sliding open alerted Rex, and out of curiosity, he opened his eyes. It was a bit blurry, but he could still sort of make out the happenings. More scientists clad in white lab coats like Caesar, entered, hands full with boards and racks of test tubes, though he couldn't be sure.

If this was how bespectacled folks see without their glasses, it sure sucks to be them.

"Dr. Salazar," one of the doctors called as he went up to Caesar, showing him stats from some kind of holographic, portable screen that he held between two hands.

Caesar dived straight into serious discussion, quickly moving on to the others who had gathered around him, waiting their turn to report their stuff to him.

The scene suddenly struck Rex as odd. Even though most of the Providence scientist do respect him and often defer to him.

However, the scene looked too much like it usually was when the science team reported to Holiday. Holiday was the head of the department after all.

Rex felt like he was going into seizure as panic gripped him.

 _Holiday – where is she?_

"Holiday," Rex croaked, leaning forwards, lungs tight, "What happened to her?"

"Not dead," Noah answered coldly, appearing at the door.

He still had that hostile glare whilst he strode in, a sort of fierce stance in his stride.

Rex felt a shiver rolling down his back involuntarily at this... hard, new Noah. Not that Noah wasn't tough or confident or had smug moments before, but this one here, was like he had run into the bowels of a demon and cut himself out. This was a very dangerous, unyielding Noah – the very aura he carried was twice that of Six.

"Six is gone. But don't go killing Holiday too in your freak amnesia."

Noah unceremoniously threw Rex's jacket at his face, stopping a few feet from the bed.

"Now that you are awake, get the hell out."

Caesar and the other scientists jolted slightly at Noah's command, looking startled, though Rex should be the one looking like he had taken a beating.

 _Noah doesn't want me around._

But Noah, always had wanted Rex around.

It was so messed up.

"Fine, I just need a minute," Rex replied weakly, defeated, conceding to Noah's orders. He can't go against the coldness of his buddy – didn't have the strength to. But he will figure out a way to get shit back to normal on his own.

"Uh actually, Noah, we have the genetic and nanite test results ready-"

"No need-" Noah held a hand up in dismissal as Caesar started showing him the holographic boards, "I already know he's the real deal."

Then Noah whipped his head to face Rex, looking impatient.

"C'mon slowpoke, hurry up. I called Circe – she screamed at me to get you home."

"I can't," Rex cast a glance at his brother. Caesar looked like he had wanted to say something, but it felt like a tidal wave of words was forcing to come out of Rex so he said first.

"I can't go back to her – _them_ ," Rex couldn't bear to mention his supposed kid.

Noah looked incensed.

"What, you're abandoning your wife and kid?"

Noah was on him in a flash, roughly shaking him by his jacket collar.

"You abandoned Six for them, and _only now_ you feel guilty and decide to leave them? Or have you got your brain damaged somewhere?"

"They _aren't real_ , Noah," Rex tried to explain weakly, "Last I remembered, Circe and I broke up. We never married. And Circe's supposed to have a kid with Skwydd, _not me._ "

Noah's snarl turned downwards more.

"You should get yourself checked into the hospital – and not here, that is. You obviously got your head bashed somewhere."

"Actually," Caesar started loudly, clearing his throat, "I think he should stay here."

Noah glared at Caesar, but before he could continue, Caesar went on in a firm and loud tone.

"You are right that Rex is the real thing. But I'm afraid, he _isn't_ exactly the Rex that you and I know."

Noah ran a hand through his head, frustrated.

"Well, he sure isn't, alright. I don't know him since he quit Providence."

Caesar gave a light laugh, the kind that signaled Noah had said something silly.

"That's not what I meant," Caesar clarified and waved at the hologram results his team held next to him, "Genetic tests were accurate. But we found minute differences in his nanite data, pertaining their age."

Noah stiffened, brows narrowed to a point.

"What do you mean?"

"This Rex is _younger_ , probably by seven years."

Noah's jaw tightened as he inched his face towards Rex.

" _Fantastic_! So he's a blast from the past?" Noah questioned acidly, face unsmiling.

Caesar shook his head, smiling, but it was a grim smile.

"I'm not too sure yet, lieutenant. I need to study him more, so he stays."

Rex cleared his throat slightly.

"Actually, Caesar, you ought to know, before I woke up and found myself here in this crazy world where everything is different, I actually had a messed up fight with Time-Meta EVO."

Caesar, the eccentric guy who seemed unfazed by anything, positively paled at that point.

"No fucking shit," Rex heard his older brother curse aloud for the first time, "I'll be damned! You should have told me sooner, now I see, why your Nanite data didn't match."

There was a sort of crazed look in his eyes.

"And there's one more thing –" Rex quickly added, "You said that I'm seven years younger than I should be, right? And Six supposedly died nine years ago."

"Yes, that is indeed so," Caesar nodded slowly.

Rex took a deep breath, chest mixed with emotion. "Well here's the thing, where I come from, Six is _still alive and well."_

Caesar and Noah both looked struck.

"Well, now he definitely _stays_ ," Caesar barely threw back at Noah, focusing an intense gaze on Rex.

" _Now you_ , won't you tell us about _your_ part of history?"

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex talked for hours, till his jaw ached, till his throat became scratchy no matter how many glasses of water he downed from time to time.

Caesar and the scientists paid full attention. A couple others came in, many whom he didn't recognize, and others filed out – probably had other work to do. They didn't need to listen through all the way anyway, since Rex was certain they would be recording this.

Noah didn't even stay five minutes, which disheartened Rex. But at least Caesar remained. His older brother listened patiently, asking his questions from time to time to clarify some points.

Rex was usually a dramatizer, and loved to exaggerate his battles and wins. Was a great story teller too. But not today. He was solemn and as factual, listing and summing up major missions and important incidents. But still there were too much details to fill out. How do you tell your whole life story in one day? But Rex managed somehow. He talked about as much of things that he thought were crucial, even described his relationships.

Before dinner, he finished right up to the point of the *World Wide Cure.

By then most of the scientist shuffled out for break. Then in came another familiar sight that gave him one less thing to worry about.

"Bobo," Rex greeted in relief and felt his eyes immediately become wet. So much welled up at the sight of his pal – the fellow EVO brethren who has been with him since his early teens.

He entered pushing a dinner trolley with food plates.

"Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes."

Bobo was unfriendly, sour look plastered on his face, but at least he didn't sound as biting as Noah. Rex hoped Bobo didn't share Noah's hostility towards him – he wouldn't know what to do if he lost both his best friends on the same day.

"Did you miss me?" Rex asked weakly.

Bobo didn't reply, making Rex crestfallen, but at least he didn't glare with hatred the way Noah did.

Bobo approached with the food which made Rex assume was for him. When Bobo neared, Rex spied tiny hands clutching the fur of the EVO's shoulders.

"Bobo, is there someone on your back?"

Bobo grunted.

"Yea, this little imp," Bobo half turned to show him at the same time parking the trolley by the bed, next to Caesar.

Rex sees a young girl on his back, about five or six, with a long black ponytail, looking happy and comfortable atop Bobo's bulky back.

No wonder Rex thought Bobo seemed like he was hunching abit, since he was balancing and supporting her weight.

"Bobo, you know she shouldn't be here," Caesar warned.

"Well, tell that to Miss Clingy here," Bobo gruffly replied. The little girl responded by giggling.

Caesar shook his head.

"Anyway can I leave him with you for a while? I need to check on something else."

"Hey! This Imp is more than enough – I don't need to babysit this giant one here," Bobo protested.

Caesar already strode halfway across the lab and threw back.

"Sorry, you can't say 'no.'"

"Geez, then why bother asking in the first place? Slave driver," Bobo muttered, and continued grumbling to himself whilst he handed over a food try to Rex.

Rex daren't interrupt him, quietly accepting his food, nodding in thanks.

Bobo brought up a chair next to the bed, and threw a disgruntled warning over his shoulders.

"Hey Imp, if you don't want me squishing you, off my back, now."

She took the hint, letting go, and perched on the foot of Rex's bed instead.

Bobo sighed and stretched his back like an old man before sinking into the chair. He then happily took one of the food trays onto his lap and dug in.

Rex fidgeted in his bed, wondering what they could talk about. He had a million questions to ask but he didn't know where to start. He wondered if Bobo felt the same.

Rex chose to start with the kid.

"So, whose kid is she?"

Bobo was about to reply but got distracted when the girl pointed at his custard dessert.

"I want that."

Bobo squinted at her with eyes narrowed like slit.

"That's mine."

"No, that's Caesar's, but you're eating his food."

"This is my reward for babysitting this giant."

"And what about my reward for helping?"

"What 'helping'? The chef was the one who prepared the food, and I was the one pushing this darn trolley all the way here. All you did was climb my back, slowing me down."

"But I want it," she pleaded, staring at it hungrily.

"You giant ant, you always want to steal every treat and dessert I have," Bobo complained, "As if it's not enough to pester me zillions of seconds in a day, for millions of hours every single day –"

"There's no million hours in a day, only twenty four hours, which makes it only eighty six thousand and four hundred seconds in a day," she corrected in a rush.

Bobo eyed her warily.

"Must you always act like a smart alec?"

A twinkle came to her eyes and she continued.

"And I don't pester you all day – not when you bathe, or go potty, or sleep."

Rex listened quietly, amused as their banter went back and forth. The kid had a witty tongue alright, and she seemed intent on annoying Bobo, obviously enjoying it. Bobo was especially comical, twitching in his seat, brows and lips jumping in agitation, super riled by her clever comebacks.

After several rounds of childish banter, the conversation funnily still ended up right where it started.

"I want it – the pudding."

Rex couldn't resist laughing at that point.

"Here kid, if you want it, you can have mine."

The kid scooted over to him quickly.

"Thank you!" she cried happily and took it, digging into it eagerly.

"Feel free to spoil her rotten and leave me suffering for it," Bobo rolled his eyes and grumbled some more.

Rex laughed sheepishly.

"At least she's cute, and she asked politely."

The kid beamed at Rex, while Bobo gave him an incredulous stare.

"You called that polite? Who taught you?"

Rex gave a tentative smile.

"Well, you."

"Haha, not funny, Rex. Your sense of humor is as terrible as it was."

Rex sensed it was Bobo's usual gruff response, and not unusually scathing. So he dared to grin.

"Also inculcated, thanks to you."

Bobo grunted and continued finishing his food, looking defeated.

The kid suddenly stared at Rex with big solemn eyes.

"Are you the 'incorrigible ungrateful lout' who deserted Bobo?"

Rex flinched like she had stabbed him with a fork. Rex looked to Bobo, but the EVO ape barely gave them a glance, suddenly engrossed with his food.

"Ah, are those Bobo's words when he talked about me?" Rex asked dryly.

She nodded in a matter-of-fact-manner.

"And what else did he say?"

"Hmmm, that if you ever came back, he would shoot you between the –"

Bobo covered her mouth with a hairy hand and hushed her before she could continue. No doubt it must have been something rather vulgar, the way he chided her to not repeat every single word he said. Rex had a pretty good guess what that was, even without her finishing her sentence anyway. And Rex was determined to straighten things up.

"Bobo, you can tell me how mad you are at me – and I can apologize a thousand times – but I want you to know, that the guy who left – he wasn't me – not really. The timeline is fucked somehow."

"So I heard from Caesar's assistants," Bobo replied dryly. "And so...?"

"So what?"

"Well, so you believe me? You're not mad?"

Bobo took a deep breath, chest heaving, brows twitching at the ends.

"Actually, if you really want to know, I'm honestly trying my best to hold back in front of her," Bobo said through clenched teeth, holding his voice in low volumes, but his tone grating, leaning forwards in his chair.

"But if you like, I can come back during her bed time hours to let you have a peace of my mind, yea?"

Bobo finished with a threaten, eyes burning with fire. Rex felt himself sinking further into the bed. This was turning out to be a hell hole bigger than what he could climb out of. Bobo was cranky and got pissed off easily, but never ever, did he had this sort of livid look in his eyes.

But after a few blinks, Bobo relaxed, settling back into his chair like the whole anger episode had passed. Just as he said, he was holding his temper in check for the sake of the young kid.

Speaking of her, she continued to stare at him, dark pupils fixated. Rex cleared his throat, trying to calm down his shaken nerves. Since Bobo had returned to acting normally, Rex figured he should follow suit.

"Uh, is there something you wanna ask me?" Rex questioned, looking at the kid.

"Why are you suddenly back here?"

Rex was stumped – god knows why she picked such a difficult question for him and how she even knew about him. Did she overhear everyone gripe about what a bastard he was for abandoning them? Rex paled to think how everyone in Providence must hate him. It sucked big time, because he sure as hell wouldn't have abandoned Providence. It was disconcerting to be facing this reality.

"He's here because Noah shot him with the brain disrupter," Bobo informed in his stead.

"You mean the electro-magnetic pulsor," she corrected him.

"Yea whatever the thingamajig that damages his brain."

"I wouldn't put it that way," she disagreed, sounding all factual and teacher-like, "It releases rapid but substantial amounts of electric pulses that short circuits the Neurotransmitters within his brain to force him into unconsciousness. Like the way tranquilizers work, just that it works immediately. But hit with a mild shot just once, wouldn't do any cerebral damage."

Rex raised a brow in show of surprise. He didn't exactly interact with kids much, but he was pretty sure a kid as young as she looked, wouldn't usually speak with the intellect of a middle or high schooler.

"Wow, smart, aren't you?" Rex praised, impressed.

"Oh no, don't gloat her," Bobo said warily. It became clear why. She smugly launched into a dialogue explaining in further detail on the energy type the weapon utilized and how the synapses were structured to facilitate neuron communication.

"My god!" Rex exclaimed loudly after she'd spoken paragraphs after paragraphs like some master-class scientist, "This kid is insane! How the hell do you know all that stuff?"

Rex wasn't even sure if he understood all that, and he was much older, plus had the fortune to receive some level of Holiday's schooling.

By then, several of the scientists have returned to the lab, and a few of them laughed at his outburst of astonishment.

"Surprising huh? She's a child prodigy," one of them explained, coming up to Rex, "But well, her mother's a genius, so she probably got her genes or something."

"Amazing! Who is her mom?" Rex asked.

The double doors slid open right there and then, a familiar voice ringing out.

"Gift! There you are! You shouldn't be – "

Rex felt his chest tighten on seeing Holiday. _Please, don't let her hate me, oh please, oh please…_

It was likely a futile prayer – she turned deathly pale on seeing him, like she'd seen a ghost, stopping dead in her tracks.

"Mommy!" the little girl cried, and sort of waved her over, not sensing the tension or torture overtaking Holiday.

Rex jolted at her words, stunned, eyes darting back to the kid.

Beckoned by her daughter, Holiday approached them stiffly, giving Rex a close comparison between Mother and child. The same heart-shaped face, almond eyes and skin – the resemblance was plain to see. This was Holiday's daughter. Rex swallowed, mouth dry. However, her black iris and jet black hair, was _Six's_.

"Rex," Holiday said shakily, "So it's true, you're back."

"Yea," Bobo grunted, "here to leech off our medical facilities."

Holiday nodded slowly.

"Caesar… hasn't told me much. Only said you came from the past."

Rex felt his heart skip.

"Holiday, I – " Rex hesitated, losing his nerve. How was he to explain that he never meant to abandon his comrades? That the 'him' who didn't show up when they needed him most, wasn't 'him' at all. But no matter how he could phrase it, it sounded like sorry excuses.

"I-I'm sorry, about Six –" he said instead. His voice broke, chest suddenly racked with the uncontrollable urge to cry loudly in agony. He covered his face with both hands, unable to meet her eyes, head sinking heavily into the pillow, wishing hell could open up beneath him and swallow him whole.

" _Oh god_ , Holiday, I'm sorry, _so-so sorry,_ " Rex choked out, shaking, every nerve twisted in sharp pain.

Arms, warm and comforting, flew over him, embracing his shoulders.

"Oh Rex, it's not your fault, it's not. Death is part and parcel of life," Holiday said softly, voice also thick with emotion.

Not expecting her to treat him so warmly, Rex cried even more. Rex struggled to keep a firm handle on his emotions, but his tears couldn't stop, dripping onto the neckline of his tee. Holiday didn't say another word, just sat by his side and gently rubbed his back, patting him as if she were comforting a child.

A long while must have passed before he calmed down a bit. By then, Bobo had taken Holiday's daughter out the lab, leaving them to have some privacy. The other scientist still remained, though they stayed in the opposite side of the room, busying about their own work and did not intrude on them. Holiday gently tugged his wrists.

"Don't take it too hard on yourself, Rex, I know _that_ must be news to you as well."

Rex allowed her to pull his hands from his face, and he dared to look at her. Her eyes were also wet, with a tear stained cheek, showing she too had cried along with him. Guilt pangs continued to besiege him, stabbing him all over the place, even if he wasn't the cause responsible for Six's death, it somehow felt like it was.

"I had _no_ clue, Holiday, I swear-"

She hushed him with a finger on his lips.

"It's alright, I know. Hypothetically speaking, you could come from another time dimension."

Rex nodded.

"It's like a _completely different_ world," Rex shared, "A complete three-sixty."

"Like?" she prompted.

"Like I wasn't supposed to be married to Circe – in fact, I never married, or rather, have not. Needless to say, I don't have a kid either. Not that I minded having the both of them, but I was still with Providence, and Six –" Rex choked up again but forced his emotions to keep from having another outburst, "Six is _still with us_. And I don't mean that time hadn't caught up yet. Where I come from, two years after the Six here _passes_ –" Rex struggled with the word, forcing it out – " _My Six_ is _still alive._ "

Holiday's reaction was immediate. She clutched both his shoulders, with narrowed eyes wet with tears again.

"What do you mean? Six is alive? _He's alive?_ In _your_ timeline?"

Rex nodded solemnly.

She sagged, heaving a big sigh, a hand flying to her mouth.

"Oh my god, so it's – I mean, _with you_ , he's alive and well…." Her tone drifted off as she deliberated on that thought, seen when she nibbled her lips as she often did.

Rex took a deep breath before continuing.

"And well, besides that, not everything is … askew here. For one thing, the both of you were also going to have a kid. You were about five, almost six months pregnant before I disappeared – I mean, came here."

"Are you serious? With Six?" she looked almost astonished, giving Rex an odd thought. Her daughter – she must have had her with Six, right? Rex couldn't imagine the Doctor being with anyone else.

"Why do you look so surprised? It's the same here, isn't it?" Rex dared to ask.

The look that Holiday gave him was like she could have bled tears. And then he suddenly realized why and wanted to sock himself on the head. Six's headstone marked his death _nine_ years ago, but her daughter didn't look anything older than that. The years just didn't match up.

"Actually, Gift is seven years old. I had her, a year after Six's death, through _in-vitro_ ," Holiday clarified a little shakily.

She explained that Six left that for her in his death will, in case he left the world before he could properly propose. That was why she named her daughter Gift, for she was the last thing Six left for her to keep her accompany. Gift, was the closest living reminder of Six that Holiday had.

Rex could feel his heart bleed, but before he could say anything in reply, Caesar returned.

"Oh, Holiday, you're here. Good, sorry I hadn't exactly brought you up to speed earlier," Caesar started, striding across the room, "I just submitted Rex's earlier recording to the Panel. They will get a team to check out if the story matched so far – but as far as I know, it seems to check out fine."

He reached them, eyed them both, then scratched his head awkwardly.

"Sorry, was I interrupting something?"

Holiday shook her head.

"No, just talking about some differences in our timeline. You can continue."

"Differences? Oh right, this Rex is _seven years younger_ than _our Rex_ should be, yet where he came from, Six was still alive. Which means, events in his timeline could veer from ours from before nine years back," Caesar deliberated aloud, then turned to Rex.

"Now, I'll need you to continue your story from where you left off – and Holiday, you might wanna sit it as well."

Holiday nodded.

"Of course."

So Rex continued from what happened after the Worldwide Cure, right up to his battle with Time-Meta EVO. When he finished, heavy silence met him. Another sob escaped Holiday, tearing up again.

"I can't believe it, so _Six's really alive_ , _with you_?"

Rex nodded, feelings tears well up again.

"Yes, in my timeline, he is."

Caesar nodded solemnly, looking much more affected than he did when he listened to Rex earlier. He had the courtesy to fish out a packet of tissue from the pocket of his lab coat, handing it to Holiday. He patted her shoulders, gently comforting her, and she quickly forced down her sniffles, dabbing her tears.

"Thanks, Caesar, I'll be okay, it's just a lot to take in at the moment."

"It is," Caesar agreed softly, "So much so that it's hard to conclude."

"But it's obvious the final two years you've described, were drastically different – that being Six's death never came and you didn't quit Providence," he noted aloud then turned to Holiday, "What's your take on it? You've been around with him more than I did, so you're probably the better judge."

Holiday nodded.

"Yes, actually, the years after the World Wide Cure were more or less the same. I think that counts about four years, but then it started to deviate on the fifth year."

"So there must be a particular incident, on that year, that made things change dramatically," Caesar suggested, "And aside from identifying that crucial factor, we have to try to figure how Time-Meta EVO comes into the picture."

"Does this mean it's my turn now, to hear _your version_ , of the history of the 'Rex' you knew?" Rex asked tentatively.

Caesar and Holiday exchanged looks, then looked back at Rex.

"Well, you see…" Holiday began….

Rex hears about the 'Rex' of 'this' timeline from Holiday and learns the startling complications.

On that summer when he broke up with Circe, here, they actually married, since Circe popped the news that she was pregnant. From what Rex gathered, he and Providence seemed to go downhill from there. Holiday didn't appear to want to elaborate much, but it was safe to assume 'Rex' had a hard time committing to Providence _and_ Circe properly. And that fateful day when Providence faced more than what they could deal with, was the very same day 'Rex' learned about Circe's miscarriage, in part due to his supposed negligence to Circe. 'Rex' was in sorrow over the news of his unborn kid, which explained why he didn't answer to any of Providence calls. He found out only the following day, what happened to Six. Tormented and torn apart, 'Rex' realized he could either have a normal blissful life with a wife and kid, or have the life as an EVO Nanite Master, but not both. So he made the painful decision to leave Providence and stay with Circe. The rest of the six years, she couldn't say, since 'Rex' quit, they never made contact again.

Rex's chest was strung so tight when Holiday finished, he could barely breathe, or even think.

He could only despair of how things went so terribly wrong. No wonder Megan disliked him so –Circe's mother had blamed the miscarriage on him.

He felt a shiver run down between his shoulder blades at the cruel twist of fate. Especially since the idea of having a happily married life and family, was something he had wishfully thought about, on many occasions. Was the Universe making a mockery out of him, blatantly shoving it in his face that the only way he could have his own family, was if he gave up on Providence? Either way, he was still losing a part of himself, and lives were still lost.

Was it really not possible for him to have both? How could reality be so cruel?

"That can't be. It just doesn't make any sense. If I travelled from the past, to 'this' future that is seven years ahead, then why doesn't our past match up?" Rex pointed out shakily, unable to wrap his head around the events.

"That is what we also need to find out," Caesar said slowly, looking unsure himself, rubbing his chin in contemplation as he spoke, "Since you say Time-Meta EVO was involved, he might have manipulated something in the past, which, no matter how small that is, could cause a ripple effect."

"However," Caesar shifted his arms to cross over his chest, frowning now, "The fact is, time is continuous, like a full circle. In theory, there's no real beginning, and no real end. So you can't actually go back to change your past and cause a chain reaction that would contradict the future. Otherwise, it's a time paradox."

"So, what does that mean?" Rex asked.

"It means, instead of travelling into the future, you could have travelled through the fabric of space-time into _another_ dimension," Holiday explained.

Rex felt a minuscule flutter of hope inside his chest.

"Wait, so that means, the world I knew – like me still in Providence, and Noah not hating me – it still exists?" Silently, he also meant Six still being alive, but he kept quiet, in consideration for this Holiday.

"It might. Though we can't be sure. So far we're still talking theory here, and nothing's certain until we can prove it," Caesar said cautiously.

"Okay, well, assuming it's true, do I have a chance to return to _my_ dimension? To _my_ timeline?"

Caesar and Holiday gave lost and helpless looks, killing Rex's hope.

"I'm sorry, Mijo, at this point, we can't really answer you. Let us do more research on this, alright? In the meantime, just try your best to settle in."

It was way past midnight by that time. Needing to know the answers, Rex had no choice but to stay the night – not like he had anywhere else to go anyway. He felt a bit guilty not returning home like he told Circe he would. But Rex really couldn't bear to go home. He didn't know what face to wear if he saw Circe and Riaena. Knowing this might not be _his_ dimension, wouldn't that also mean they were not really _his_ family? He felt torn. How was he supposed to be a good father or husband to them? It was just too confusing to be with them at the moment, so he rather stayed in Providence. Besides, Caesar said he would talk to Circe on his behalf, about needing to temporarily keep Rex here for further observation and study.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The following morning came after an endless night of fitful sleep. Rex felt like a worn solider run down with EVO hordes, with dozen copies of Circe and Raiena riding them, whilst he chased over Six's back, who kept beyond his reach.

He woke multiple times from the nightmare, only to return to it when his eyes closed. So he barely slept a wink, eyes heavy and puffy, from the tears that continued to escape him through the night.

With twenty-four hour shifts, Rex noticed different scientists and staff come and go, but only knew it was morning when a staff sent over his breakfast, pushing it on a trolley like Bobo did.

Rex barely found the strength to eat. His stomach was so knotted with troubles anyway, he was sure he wouldn't be able to digest a thing. The scientists came to check on him when he was done eating, and left him alone to brood. He was already well enough to get out of bed, but he was listless, and distraught, and at loss of what to do, so he remained in bed like an undead corpse, spinning the depressing discoveries of the past week in his head.

Caesar came in not before long, and informed Rex that the Panel would be listening to Rex's report delivered last night.

"Just be patient – think they should come to a consensus by the end of today, or tomorrow latest, after reviewing everything."

"Thanks brother, but 'a consensus' to what, exactly?"

"On whether or not you can stay here."

Rex flinched, heart sinking heavier that Providence had no forgiveness for him.

"I see, so White Knight and most of them couldn't wait to kick me out, huh? Who are the 'Panel' anyway?"

Caesar quickly waved a hand.

"Oh no, no, Rex, you might be a bit mistaken here. White Knight is on the Panel, yes, but things are a little different here."

He briefly explained how in the years since 'Rex' quit, Providence faced a lot of pressure from the Public's declining confidence. The government thus forced Providence to be absorbed under Homeland Security. A lot of reshuffling and restructuring happened within the entire organization. Hence, alongside White Knight, the ones overseeing Providence now included the Homeland Security Chief Commander and a few other chief ranks from other defense sectors.

Rex nodded as he listening, noting that it explained why he couldn't find Providence on the internet. It was filed under Homeland Security.

"And, as for exactly why, your being here is a cause for conflict, you might want to give Circe a call to check in on that," Caesar suggested.

Rex gave him a pained look that quickly hinted Caesar to say otherwise. So his older brother explained how Circe filed against Providence to force them to release him, and not allowing them to activate him again. Realization dawned on Rex – it explained why Circe warned him not to expose his powers in public, since he was barred from doing so too. It made Rex irate, perplexed why Circe had to go to such lengths.

Hearing Rex's dissent, Caesar quickly clarified further.

"Why else? It's because Providence refused to let you quit in the first place. Look, I know the situation doesn't sound too good, but try not to be so upset with Circe. She took great pains and effort to gather the necessary documents, go through endless law firms and court sessions just to try to fight for your rights and secure your freedom. You're a US citizen after all, and unfortunately, back in the early days, whilst Providence was still under the Consortium, they made the mistake of converting your 'identity' as their 'intellectual property' under their 'Combat and Weapons Arm.'

The error was never corrected even when they changed ownership for complete government handling. So when the documents leeked out to the press, Human Rights group was up in protest, and they helped Circe to make the case favorable to you."

Rex became shocked hearing the complex drama that had ensued over 'his' resignation. Which made him angrier.

"This is bullshit. In the first place, I didn't want this."

"No, I guess not 'you'. But the 'Rex' here, wanted this."

"Well, but 'he' isn't fucking here now, is it? I'm the one here, taking his shitty place in this shitty turn of events. It sucks hearing how everything's screwed. Yet you're telling me, that I shouldn't be so upset?"

Rex flashed angry eyes at Caesar, huffing slightly.

Caesar stiffened visibly, lips drawing thin.

"You're right, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought this up. Anyway," Caesar half turned away, "I just wanted to let you know I'll do my best to convince the Panel that 'you' are not the same 'Rex'. Hence, you shouldn't be legally bonded to the documents and you should be allowed back into Providence. At least then, you could stay here whilst I do my research to figure out if there's any way to get you back to your world."

Rex's heat dissipated that instant, realizing he'd let his temper get the better of him. He wanted to kick himself. All his older brother did was inform of the things that had taken place here, and offer some counsel at the same time. Caesar was trying to help him, yet he'd acted like such a jerk.

"Caesar, wait," Rex sat up and grabbed his brother's wrist, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to flare up – "

A resounding siren aired through the sound system, interrupting Rex, and making his blood race in the familiar rush of adrenaline.

"Something's going on?" Rex became tensed.

"Most definitely, down in some city, likely. That's the alarm for activation of the combat troops."

Rex jumped out of bed that instant, ignoring Caesar calls that he shouldn't go, and ignoring the dull ache at his gut.

Once out the lab, Rex was greeted by corridors of sienna concrete and had to remind himself that they were no longer within the pristine white foundations of the previous Providence building.

Rex listened to the announcements blaring overhead and used his acute hearing as his guide to follow the resounding clatter of running boots on the stonewashed granite flooring. The place was different from Providence's layout, but it wasn't hard to find his way, reaching the armory on the ground floor before long, where troops were scurrying to get their weapons. Then he noticed where he thought their inner pieces were black, on up close, it was actually a deep green.

Noah suddenly came out, barking orders but seeing Rex, he froze abit in surprise, then agitation quickly overtook his features.

"What the fuck are you here for? Get outta our way!"

Rex didn't get the chance to make his plea to join, as Noah harshly shoved him aside, running past him to lead the troops. But another person remained rooted, glaring at Rex like she'd seen a hated nemesis.

" _Beverly?_ " Rex was stunned to see her in combat uniform.

Without a word, she rushed up to him and gave a hard slap to his cheek.

She heaved a sigh.

"God damn, that felt good," she announced in an acid tone, smoothly combing her long ponytail in one deft movement, "Sorry, even if Holiday tells me you're not exactly 'him', I still can't forgive you."

She promptly rejoined the other officers, running alongside their files. There were bunches of surprised and confused looks from the other combat officers, several with hostile stares, but no one dallied to question him, urged on by the Noah's bark that still echoed from far down the corridor.

Another officer veered from the group and came to stand before Rex.

"Kenwyn," Rex barely mustered the courage to whisper her name, "You can have my other cheek, if you want."

Instead of hitting him like Beverly, she grabbed him by the shoulders, furrowed gaze intense, burrowing into his.

"Is it true, Six didn't die in _your_ timeline?"

Rex shook his head.

"Then what about Shadow – does he _still_ have his legs?"

Rex balled his eyes. Every hair on his back rose in horror.

"You mean Shadow _lost_ his legs?"

"Answer me!" she barked, shaking him, "Does Shadow still have _his legs_?"

"Yes, yes he does. He's completely well and jumping!"

She heaved a heavy sigh, releasing him and sagging slightly, eyes squeezed shut. Her both palms met together, touching her lips as she faced skyward. Rex thought he caught her mumbling something that looked like 'thank god'.

When she next opened her eyes, Rex could see them glistening and she looked miles relieved, though the edges were feathered with sadness. But within a blink, it was gone, replaced by her usual tough expressions.

"Well, then, if that's the case, I guess I can say I'm somewhat glad to see you."

Rex felt a tortured smile twitching at his lips.

"Really? You have nothing bad to say to this jerk?"

Kenwyn's gaze softened abit, and she barely managed a smile that looked unsure, unlike the confident lieutenant she always looked.

"Actually, I don't know man. It's like seeing a ghost."

"I didn't die."

"No… but you just disappeared without a word. It felt almost unreal."

"Well I'm real. And I'm helping you guys. This time, I won't abandon you."

Kenwyn took a sharp intake of breath, and looked almost teary eyed again, reminding Rex that his disappearance had a huge impact on everyone. Not just Holiday or Noah, but also his friends, his team – everyone.

Here, 'he' had let them all down. So he can't let that happen again.

Then she blinked, and her gaze was serious and hard again. She nodded.

"You can try to help. But Noah won't be too happy."

"I will deal with that. He's pissed at me before."

She gave a bland smile. "Maybe. But I think you may find yourself more trouble than help. A lot of things have changed – we've assimilated into Homeland Security, so we now take command under them."

Rex nodded.

"I know, but I'll do my best, like I always do."

"Funny to hear you say that, because that one time that we desperately needed you, you just didn't show."

Rex turned on that unfamiliar icy tone to meet the unfamiliar, hostile stare of another close friend – Matthew. Rex felt slightly winded, never having faced this side of Matthew before.

"Yet you have the fucking gall to come back and show your face here," Matthew spat, hackles rising, striding over like a dark cloud.

"Matthew, I believe the report already passed down that this Rex is not our 'Rex'," Kenwyn defended, tone firm.

"The hell I care. Still Rex all the same – the asshole."

He flung a punch and Rex would have gladly taken it, but Kenwyn blocked it with her arm.

Matthew looked incensed.

"You siding with the traitor? Ken?"

"Fuck off, Matthew," she growled.

It incited Matthew further. He swung a kick that Kenwyn blocked, then blow for blow, they matched evenly. Rex would have jumped in for damage control, but he backed away instead to give them room, knowing that he would make matters worse.

"What the fuck are the two of you doing?"

That shout was unmistakable. Rex wouldn't even need to turn to know Captain Calan had appeared. He was still fit and well built, but looked like he'd aged a lot, dirty blond hair thinned along his hairline, lines on his face deep, as if countless battles have worn him down.

"Instead of wasting time here, you should be out in your rovers already! Especially Lieutenant Kenwyn, I expect nothing less from you!"

Both stopped on command, but still fumed, chest heaving slightly. They exchanged a final crossed glare before spinning on their heels, taking down the corridor. Rex shivered slightly when the Captain's harsh gaze fell to him next.

"It's not yet concluded if you're allowed to get into the battle with Providence," Captain informed coldly, squashing all of Rex's ardent desire to join.

"Please, listen, Captain Calan, I can help," Rex pleaded in a rush, "I know I can –"

"Didn't you hear? I said, 'it's not yet concluded,'" the Captain repeated, cutting him off, "Which means you can still do whatever the hell you want until Top Down relays confirmation that you are forbidden from joining Providence missions."

Rex felt himself perk up abit. Thank Captain for his subtle nicety. Finally, he could have the chance to redeem himself, or rather, right the wrongs he didn't know he made.

 ** _End of chapter_**

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

* * *

 **Footnotes:**

 ***World Wide Cure :** Everything that happened in the cartoon remains the same in this alter-dimension.

Please be patient with me during these hair-raising turn of events….. things return to normal. I promise.


	39. Chapter 39: Restart

**Chapter 39: Restart**

(Rex struggles to turn the pages in this alternate world.)

* * *

Rex had overheard the announcements blasting earlier about Time-Meta EVO and his 'Time-bots'. He was adamant and eager to face the bastard who caused him his current predicament. But he wasn't expecting anything like this.

Bronze, mechanical robots with giant gears for a central body connecting to retractable metal arms and legs, stormed one of the city centers. Clog wheels and metal components of various sizes moved in cohesion like a clock, from which Rex assumed was what drove their movements. Their bulky center bodies were roughly thrice a human's size, and held stable by four pairs of completely flexible legs that looked like thick, metal coils akin to the whips Rex could create. Hence, despite its clumsily appearance, it was agile and completely dexterous, every segment of its leg able to sidle inwards on itself like a telescope contracting, or extend upwards rapidly to towering heights.

About a dozen of these rampaged the city and it was a good thing the normal civilians had already long been evacuated, since these robots paid absolutely not attention where they crushed. They had powerful claws at the ends of two arms, allowing them to high jump and dig powerful grips into the buildings, allowing them to hang off it, or with their formidable and smooth retractable legs, they could see saw in between and over shorter buildings with ease. With such maneuverability, it made it difficult for Providence troops to tackle it.

Rex wasted no time plowing his giant nanite fists into their central core. But he banged against a deathly hard, transparent casing instead, _Ombré_ , transcient colors rippling out from the contact of his punch, allowing him to see a sort of crystallized form.

Noah was livid, screaming at Rex to get out of the way, which he didn't listen. There were a chorus of shouts and commands Rex could pick up so it was too confusing to discern what they were saying anyway.

Rex whipped out his big fat sword next, but again, it met the impossibly hard, transparent casing. Its metal, octopus-like arms swerved inwards to attack him, claws opening up to reveal spine-chilling splinters wedged within the core of its palms. He ballooned out a force shield to bubble him before the splinters launched. Worried, he cast anxious glances all round and sees the other bots also raining spiny, foot-long darts over the other officers. Thankfully, they had a curved shield plate that quickly extended out from their left forearms, blocking the dangerous foray.

Rex couldn't focus on the others for long. Metal arms hurtling towards him in rapid speed, so he met the giant limb head on with his sword before it bashed his side.

On contact, Rex dreaded to feel the familiar sensation of the *invasive nanites. He collapsed his contaminated sword before the foreign nanites could rush into his body. He cursed inwardly, but forced a steady head. Dancing in between its' speedy, flexible arms, he rotated through different blaster type weapons he could come up with to shoot its core, praying he could break through that crystalized barrier.

Then out of the blue, he saw Noah jump atop one of its wildly swinging arms, racing down along it towards him. Rex was too distracted being impressed by Noah's brave stunt and skill that he didn't realize he was about to be pierced through a hurtling claw at his back, until Noah fired a shot that flew over Rex's head.

Startled by that action, Rex snapped his head backward in time to see a blue-light shot collide with the giant claw, then Noah landed on him, the force pushing him a couple of yards backwards till they ended in a roll on the ground.

Rex blinked, temporarily disorientated to be flat on the ground with Noah's face over him.

Noah fisted his shirt, blue eyes flashing.

"What the fuck were you doing? Pay attention or get the fuck out of the way!" Noah roared, every vein on his forehead throbbing. Rex should feel chastised, but he felt relief instead, drowning in those bright blue orbs and blinded by the halo cast on the tops of his blond head from the sunlight – Noah looked like a fearsome warrior Angel who just saved him from death.

But in the short distance from them, Rex got distracted by the sight of the claw moving behind Noah's head so didn't manage to say his thanks. The claw that Noah had shot, moved in slow undulation, with tiny rays of bright light escaping from the seams of the segments of its arms, as if the claw had swallowed the energy blast like a serpentine monster. At first, it didn't seem like the shot had done much else, as the light traveled downwards and disappeared into the connecting value of its core body. Then suddenly, a mini explosion burst from the robot's side, spewing cracked metal parts like it was spilling its guts.

"Amazing," Rex breathed.

"Yea, so as you can see, we're perfectly capable to handle this without you, like we've done for the past years," Noah growled before picking himself off Rex and bounding off to deal with the robot's other arm, though other officers were already on it.

Rex felt like he was just dealt with a blow to big for him to recover – but this was no time to be baby. Since Providence had managed to create weapons efficient to deal with these robots, he should get himself one too. But it was just as Noah had said, the sound of explosion elsewhere and smoke gushing out from another Time-bot as if a fire storm had taken place inside its body, alerted Rex that they really were adept at handling matters on their own.

Rex felt his initial resolve waiver abit it. If he was of no help here, then there wasn't a need for him to remain in Providence, was there? The thought frightened him so much he sort of froze at where he was, not doing anything except to watch the combat troops tackle the robots.

He dejectedly observed Noah's team frantically setting up some sort of machine that beamed light over the Time-bot after both arms and even its legs were all shot and neutralized. The light must be some kind of special energy wave, for it burned the crystallized case where Rex could not. Flakes of red sparked off the shell of the Time-bot, then turned grey like ash, tearing away into the wind, revealing some of its blackened and damaged inner parts before it completely erupted into flames.

Then suddenly, Rex detected an unusual energy that sent every fibre in his body jumping in alarm. Not caring whether he could be of any use, he rushed over to the second bot that was supposed to have an arm shot dead and lifeless on the ground. He saw that the Time-bot had its other undamaged claw pinching a cable, sucking up the electricity for its own. As it did, its other arm vibrated violently, jumping around on the ground then levitating slowly like a demon snake coming back to life. The fully healed limb swerved towards the nearby officers, sending Rex in panic, knowing if that recoil hit them, they would get more than a few broken bones. However, much to his puzzlement they did not move an inch, not attempting at all to run from the incoming monstrous limb.

Everything within Rex told him something was fundamentally not right. He was the only one still moving along with the Time-bot, matching its speed whilst everyone else remained frozen.

Realization dawned at the moment that he reached the officers, catching all of them with a supersized fist to carry them out from harm's way. The next moment, things returned to normal speed and he'd fallen from his Slyder, out of balance from the unimaginable high speeds he had just moved at, rolling on the ground along with the guys he had saved.

"Rex!" Kenwyn cried, being one among them. She knelt on the ground, panting deeply, distressed look on her face.

"Shit, we were nearly hit, were we?"

Rex nodded solemnly, before diving back to tackle that Time-bot. He distracted the bots to give the troops leverage, and shielded them at the same time from the raining darts and its crushing claws. Once the bot had all limbs shot down, the troops hurried to finish it up with the special beam whilst Rex moved on to the next bot. Soon enough, another was down and another, till they were left with the last.

It was the hardest to tackle, mostly because it had the time to absorb much more power from the electrical cables whilst Providence was busy dealing with the other Time-Bots. It moved much faster, such that Providence officers seem to be moving in slow motion. Rex was the only one moving at its speed, as if they were in a time-pane of their own. He grabbed one of Providence's special blasters for himself, and pulled the trigger, firing off six shots in rapid succession, all aimed at the EVO's limbs.

The shots however, seemed to take ages just leaving the gun barrel, vexing Rex, so he attempted to give them an extra push, kicking the seemingly floating orbs of energy with super powered nanites boots.

It worked – energy shots rocketed towards the Time-Bot, till they were just a few feet within reach. All of a sudden, the shots became disappeared into thin air, as if entering an invisible portal.

At the same time, a similar figure in green appeared. Rex tensed, feeling deep anger rise up within him.

"Xanubian," Rex growled, words coming out slow and fragmented to his ears. Rex zipped towards him, but found he was moving at frustratingly slow speeds. He frowned, knowing he wasn't matching up to Xanubian's speed.

"I see, so _you've_ finally appeared – that one I tousled with from the other dimension. I was wondering when you were going to catch up, or if you would ever appear," Xanubian mused aloud, tone taunting.

" _You bastard_ , this is all your doing. You messed up my world!"

"Not completely," Time-Meta EVO cocked his head, "Of course, I intended to trap you inside a bubble of time, but you interfered, and somehow, flung us both back – me, even further. But it turned out equally advantageous for me, even if it was not exactly how I had planned."

A thousand bells clashed and thundered inside Rex's head, making it hurt.

Dread and an unimaginable amount of shock hit him. _I'm the one?_ Rex could barely believe what he heard. How was _he_ the one who caused time to go askew?

"Fuck off with your jokes, take me back to where I was, now!"

Xanubian only gave a wicked laughter and started turning translucent with the Time-bot behind him.

"Alas, I hope to stay and chat longer, but I can't. So I'll be taking my Time-bot with me."

"Fuck you!" Rex cried out, voice resounding, echoing even after Xanubian completely disappeared. He could felt the air return to normal, no longer affected by Xanubian's time-manipulating ability.

He could hear several mumbles and gasps of surprise behind him over what was happening, but Rex didn't bother to explain. He was wrapped up in his own turmoil, knees on the ground, repeatedly cursing to himself.

"Rex? What was going on? Where's the Time-bot?" Kenwyn came up behind him, "And what's up with you?"

She shook him and forced him to face her.

"Rex! What's wrong, what happened?" she pressed, tone urgent.

"It's all my fault-" his lips quivered, " _Everything is my fault_."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"So the Prodigal son returns."

There was no love in that tone, no doubt since 'Rex' had caused White Knight a lot of trouble. His face was just as grim and broody, but aged further like Captain Calan, as if worn down by hell storms and raging fires.

"Thanks to you, I'm shitting in a hell hole again," White Knight glared at Rex. He would have normally shrugged it off like it was nothing, but he had trouble keeping his back straight under the scrutiny of seven old men staring down at him from their high desks in a semi-circle.

Even though they were all just hologram live-video images, they looked like hawks ready to pounce and able to peck his flesh at a moment's notice.

"Look at it this way, at least you still got an ass to defecate. Had yesterday's mission been a disaster, you'll be losing your ass," came the rude, raunchy comeback of another Panel member, dressed in the full green uniform of Homeland Security.

From the messy, tacky hordes of military decorations pinned onto his uniform, Rex guessed that he must be the Chief of Homeland Security, and looked about White Knight's age.

"Are you kidding me? He shitted all over me just by showing up at yesterday's mission, when he _wasn't_ supposed to – no thanks to his missus. And you say it wasn't a disaster? Did you not read the twenty page memo from the _President's office_ , _questioning_ his sudden re-appearance?"

"Oh no, I guess not, my secretarial team must not have forwarded it to me."

"Well, fire them all then!" White Knight barked, incensed, "Bloody good load of _Slow Lorises_ they all are! Snails crawl faster than they do."

"Oh pipe it, White, that's because we've got hordes of email and intel to filter through. Don't forget, I've still got International Defense matters to attend to, so my people don't have as much time on their hands."

"And you think I have the luxury of time to waste? Those empty nuke threats have been dragging on for years! Try taking on my scope for a change and let's see how you deal with battling high-tech super maniacs attacking the city every other week!"

"Doubting my competence, are you? White?" The chief edged challengingly, and made a show to puff out his chest like a rooster, bringing attention to all the medals and awards pinned onto his uniform.

"Oh don't bother showing that off – it's a mess to look at," White Knight seethed.

The other gave an annoyed sigh before arguing back. Some of the other men in the Panel looked equally annoyed and started joining in the argument. Opinions were divided mainly between those who wanted Rex to rejoin Providence and those who opposed it. Rex would have laughed at the comical banter of these louts at loggerheads. He wouldn't expect those of their decorum to speak so crassly. But then again, White Knight had never been one to mince words. And men who climbed to such high ranks had to be as tough as nails, and didn't hold any barrs back.

"You can't be serious about wanting Rex to suddenly come back," White Knight was aghast. We barely managed to cover up after that horrible news exposé. Bitches nearly hung us over some exaggerated crap of enslaving and torturing him, and refuting him 'his rights to freedom'. What are we going to tell the public now?"

"Make up some story – I don't care how – so long as we get it clear that Rex is back on board."

"Oh and you think the public will just accept his sudden reappearance? Providence ratings will be tumultuous!"

"Then so be it – of course there will be some big hoo-ha about it but look at the big picture, no one is going to really care why he's suddenly back. The important thing is, _he is back_ , and did you see the press footage of how he performed yesterday? My goodness, Providence might actually see an improvement in their ratings for the first time in a long while!"

"Hmmph!" White Knight grunted, "Funny you had time to watch paparazzi recordings instead of answering to the President's Office."

The Chief pointedly ignored him.

"Now, to get my point across, shall we bring in our Combat Head and review how big of a plus he would be?"

Captain Calan entered the room, and they began with asking the Captain's opinion on Rex's performance. To Rex's relief, Calan approved of his involvement, outlaying the facts of how Rex worked incredibly well with the troop and eased the difficulty by a mile. Lucky Rex, Captain Calan talked and acted much the same as the 'original'. His tone was firm but even, opinions fair, judging solely on facts squarely, instead of letting emotions affect him like it did to many others.

"And so what? The troops are still able to handle the situation – they have been doing so for a long time," White Knight pointed out, still unconvinced.

"True, but the fact is, Sir, that it gets harder and harder every several months. The Time-bots have been continuously upgraded – no thanks to Modifier. Every time our tech team comes up with something that could bring them down, the Time-bots appear three months after, with better upgrades and becomes harder to beat. Frankly, I don't know how long more could we keep up this neck to neck arms race. As far as I can see, the only one capable to respond adequately and right on the dot, against Time-Meta's upgrading tech, is Rex."

White Knight seemed to begrudgingly accept the stance of his top combat officer.

"Fine, let's say we agree on this, but there's still the legal problem."

The Chief of Homeland Security became delighted to call on Caesar next.

Caesar enters, and attempted to explain to the Panel as much as he understood Rex's situation.

"Gentlemen, I believe you should have seen my report that this Rex _is younger by seven years._ "

"So he came from the past? Like time travel?" a panel member asked.

"Yes – no, not exactly."

"Jesus Christ, make up your mind," another lamented irritably.

"He will if you give him the chance to finish," the Chief chided, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

Caesar cleared his throat.

"Well, the thing is, he did come from the past. But when we checked his version of things, everything matched completely, _except for his final two years –_ which is up to the point before he found himself thrown here _._

For instance, in his twenty-first and twenty-second year, he was _still_ an active member of Providence. However, _our_ Rex was supposed to have quit. Besides this, there many other points from his recount that was different from what we know. Which means, he probably didn't come from _our_ past."

"Then where the hell did he come from?"

"Simple. Another dimension altogether."

Deep breaths and heavy gasps of shock rippled through the Panel. The implications of Caesar's theory was enormous. Needless to say, the Panel threw many questions, like how different dimensions could exist.

Caesar insisted it was the only explanation for why both histories didn't match up exactly.

"Aren't you overlooking the fact that Rex battled with Xanubian?" White Knight questioned, brows near meeting center in trying to comprehend the situation, "He said the fight went south, and while he got flung here, couldn't Xanubian have gone back into his past to change something, leading to our – well, this timeline? And the reason why Rex's not up to date on it, is because of his unique circumstance of being a time traveler."

"Well, what you say is also true. But we have to be careful when considering that, as it could very well lead to a time-paradox – since, you can't exactly change anything in the past that could alter the future and cause impossible inconsistencies. And that in itself, can hardly be proven – we wouldn't know what the future should be, if the past had been changed, or whether the future we have now, is indeed the 'legitimate' one.

The other alternative scenario – if we are to keep the timeline clean – would be Xanubian causing a split in space-time, creating an alternate dimension altogether."

Caesar explained it was where the entire passage of time right up to whichever point a change occurred, would be replicated, and then veer off after that. This would be the more likely scenario, in order to prevent dimension instability, which could very well rip up the entire fabric of space-time and destroy multiple universes.

"So you're saying every time a time traveler tries to fuck up the timeline, an entire dimension is created? How insane is that?" Another panel member commented in disbelief, "Then how about that time when *Rex tangoed with Van Kleiss and Breach? I know the three of them traversed centuries! And you, yourself, had *travelled at light speed and went five years into the future!"

Caesar nodded coolly.

"I see your doubts. But let me just explain how both were rather unique circumstances. My foray wouldn't have impacted space-time, since I did not travel by unnatural means. I'd went along with the events at the time, and since we found no double copy of myself, five years ahead, it is safe to conclude that space-time was not compromised."

"And as for Rex and the other two's adventure, when he returned six months after disappearing, I checked his nanite age, and found that he had aged exactly accordingly to the time he had been gone. Which means, though they traversed centuries, they were still keeping within the same time continuity. As such, I doubt a spilt in timeline had occurred."

"Which means, you think _that_ was meant to happen, within our timeline?"

More perplexed looks hung on the Panel's faces, and they questioned the validity behind Caesar's claim, since it contradicted his initial theory that time couldn't be rewritten. The unfortunate blast with the device sending all three of them back, should have also caused the timeline to split into a second continuity.

Caesar cleared his throat. "It could, I suppose – there's no real way we can validate it. But I have evidence to support my claim. Actually, over the years, Holiday and Intel had requested my help for several occasions, dusting our history books and artefacts. And we can gather, several clues from ancient history, that Van Kleiss had already – "

White Knight suddenly made a gargantuan cough whilst eyeing Caesar threateningly. Caesar stiffened abit, eyes widening just the slightest, suggesting he was revealing something that was supposed to be secret.

"What about Van Kleiss? What do he do in the past?" The Chief was quick to ask, not missing the tiny altercation between White Knight and Caesar.

White Knight ended his rough cough by clearing his throat. He laced his fingers on his holographic desk, shoulders rolling back slightly, a stance he took when he wanted to end something quickly or skip through a line or two.

"Let's just say *whatever he did in the past, was already meant to happen, because there were no inconsistencies."

"And anyway," Caesar quickly continued after him, as if to hurry away from the thread about Van Kleiss's venture into the past, "You might find the idea of parallel dimensions as ludicrous, but may I remind you the existence of *Ben Tennyson?"

The scientist crooked a brow, challenging the rest of the Panel. He went on to reiterate that this concept of parallel universes was very real, as proven by Ben suddenly crashing into their world, along with the *Alpha.

The Panel looked at one another on that reminder, forced to swallow it down.

"Fine then, supposing that what you say is true, that begs the question –where did the 'Rex' of our dimension, disappear to? We checked satellite and scanners, but we don't pick up on having two Rexes. If he's – " White Knight threw a chin at Rex, "from another dimension, or timeline, then _where, is our Rex?"_

Caesar put his hands to his back, looking somber. "Unfortunately, I think only Xanubian can answer that. We can only assume he had displaced our 'Rex' somehow."

The Panel looked about to burst their brains just trying to digest it, as did Rex.

 _Displaced?_ So his Other-self was supposedly missing, disappeared god knows where. It was suddenly troubling, now that Caesar suggested parallel dimensions and two Rexes. On that note, what about Xanubian? Wouldn't that also mean there were supposed to be two of them as well?

And hell, all this trouble was because Xanubian and Rex had a fucked up fight? He warred inwardly, recalling Xanubian's words to him. Xanubian hadn't intended to send them back in time to anywhere. He mentioned wanting to trap Rex within a 'bubble of time' –whatever the hell that means. Rex thought Caesar might know, but eyeing the Panel barking in agitated discourse, discouraged him from asking. It would probably be better to ask in private, or when the fires die down.

"I have enough of this mambo jumbo," White Knight eventually declared, patience worn out, "What I want to take away from the head fuck, is that you are absolutely certain that this Rex is not the 'Rex' of this dimension, or timeline, yes?"

"A hundred percent, boss."

White Knight nodded, satisfied.

"Good, then those damn self-righteous Human Rights watch dog can't touch us."

The Panel meeting was adjourned after more discussions, with the verdict that Rex was allowed to facilitate Providence's operations. Caesar excused himself immediately to draw up the necessary paperwork.

The other Panel members disappeared, leaving White Knight to continue discussion with Captain Calan on the specifics of Rex's role. Rex kept an awkward silence, not daring to make any comment whilst he remained in the room, listening. Midway through, White Knight ordered Noah to come in, and Rex felt even more uncomfortable to feel that cold, cerulean glare as the blond strode in.

"Listen, lieutenant –" Rex searched Noah's uniform with his eyes on hearing White Knight address him such, then found the rank on his shoulder epaulettes – having not noticed it before as it was now worn on a different part of the uniform.

"The Panel has agreed to assimilate Rex into combat ranks."

"But Sir, I thought you were vehemently against it."

"I was, but –"

"And you were going to talk down the Chief today –"

"I was!" White Knight snapped, not taking to being interrupted. Noah didn't look like he'd stand down either, but he kept shut.

"I think this is a bad idea, but that _Piñata got the whole Panel on board the idea so there's nothing I could do. Besides, the paparazzi stole footage yesterday and it was on last night's headline news!" White Knight fumed, and started jumping how he'd wring Public Relation's neck for their carelessness._

 _"_ _Anyway, we could have other videos loose in the future, and a wrong move could hurt our ratings and put us in the red zone again. So to prevent that, Noah, I'm putting you in charge of walking our current protocols with him. Make sure he doesn't screw up on any mission."_

 _Noah's brow jumped into a dangerously high arc, and his jaw clenched visibility._

 _"_ _Sir, I'm afraid I'm not much suited to the task – "_

 _"_ _What are you flubbering about? You are best friends, aren't you?"_

 _"_ _Were," Noah corrected with menace, causing Rex to flinch._

 _"_ _I don't care, just do what you have to. If I have to live with Rex under my arm, then so do you."_

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Rex!" Holiday called after a little while after Rex was finally freed from the Panel room.

He was glad to finally see the first cheerful, warm face that day.

"Heya Holiday, do you need something from me?"

She had a slight twinkle in her eyes, and smiling lips that told him she could barely contain her excitement.

"No, but I do have something for you. I just got the news top down –with your status officially cleared in the green, I've just made your arrangements for your sleeping quarters. I mean, you can't be bunking in the lab forever."

"Well, that's fast," Rex noted aloud.

Holiday had a secretive smile that told him she had long been preparing for it. Her footsteps quickened down several hallways.

"I have to apologize beforehand for the mess. It was pretty chaotic when we moved, and we were just so busy after that, but well," she paused outside one of the doors and gave a small smile, "Here it is."

And boy, was Rex surprised.

Everything in his room – his bed, his funky colored couch, his huge flat-screen TV and game consoles hooked to it, his desk, his small assortment of cabinets – everything he had was in this room.

Rex felt his chest become tight, welling with emotions.

"Holiday, I don't know what to say," he looked at her gratefully, but she looked somewhat surprised.

"It's nothing, it's just when we had to move buildings, I couldn't bear to throw your stuff away. Besides, Bobo still wanted everything around, so we salvaged all the stuff from your old room and shifted it there."

"Wow, that's amazing, everything looks almost exactly as it should be!" Rex exclaimed, then gave Holiday a big hug, who hugged back happily.

He entered and looked about his room, footsteps lightened by leaps and bounds.

"So, does Bobo sleep here now?" Rex asked, even though it didn't look like it.

"No, he sleeps in the room next to me, actually, so he could help me look after Gift."

Rex was pleasantly surprised.

"Bobo's a good nanny, isn't he?"

She nodded. "Yes, and Gift has become quite attached to him."

Rex nodded, smiling, then wondered if Beverly also helped look after Gift. But remembering Beverly's acrid remarks, Rex decided not to ask, not wanting the mood to turn sour.

"Anyway, I suppose Bobo must have tidied your room," Holiday guessed aloud as she looked around, laughing sheepishly, "I never actually managed to arrange your things after the move. I thought we left it like a hurricane had run through."

"Well, lucky me – I don't have to pack or clean anything," Rex gave her giant smiles and thanked her again, though by then, he was already feeling his smile waiver. Since he noticed how the stationary on his table was impossibly neat, telling him who was actually the one who packed and cleaned his room.

Rex kept it to himself though, and held it together long enough till Holiday left him alone to rest.

Rex bolted to his cabinet once she left, opening every drawer for inspection. His clothes were folded impeccably neat, and stacked according to color, including his socks and underwear. Left to him or Bobo, they'd roll their clothes in any fashion and just stuff it in the cupboard.

His desk was especially telling – he walked right up to it again and stared at the arrangement of the pens, markers, rulers and paper placed in a neat file. Every item of stationary actually belonged to Noah, things he left behind every now and then when he came over from college.

Besides that, the rest of the furniture too, were arranged in almost exact precision of how it had in his old room. Only one person Rex knew who'd been in his room, and had such OCD when it came to bedrooms, came to his mind.

Noah was the one.

Rex shook slightly upon discovering that Noah's the one who straightened his room, chest a flutter with a feeling of hope, seeing this as proof that Noah had missed him and still cared. Otherwise, why would he painstakingly bother to arrange Rex's room like the way it used to be?

So then, where is the caring Noah beneath that cold and callous mask?

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

Sorry, pls bear with me for the confusing bits. I've tried to adapt already existing ideas in the cartoon – like the time jump, and multi-verse platforms. Hope these are acceptable theories within the show's concepts.

 ***invasive nanites:** Nanites altered by The Modifier. Rex first came across it as bombs attached on the holding pillars during the oil rig mission against Blaster Prince and Meta-Elemental EVO (Roswell, Ex-Consortium member) (chapter 3-4).

Reappeared again as the constituents inside a Nanite robot that is a replica of Dynamo-Meta EVO (Anthony, Ex-Consortium member) (chapter 19-21).

So far, Providence has yet to uncover how the Ex-Consortium was linked to The Modifier. Neither do they have a clue on what Modifier's motives and plans are.

 ***Rex tangoed with Van Kleiss and Breach? I know the three of them traversed centuries:**

From the original cartoon. Episode 'Lions and Lambs' and 'A brief History of Time'. They were shot back in time due to the power disability caused by the failsafe programmed into the power-amplifier that Van Kleiss built for Breach.

 ***travelled at light speed and went five years into the future!:**

From the original cartoon. During the Nanite Event, Caesar escaped in his pod to get away from the lab explosion. Whilst he struggled to gain controls of the system, the pod travelled at such high speed, he went into the future.

 ***whatever he did in the past:**

From the original cartoon. 'Riddle of the Sphinx' and 'A brief History of Time' suggested Van Kleiss' venture in the past was already pre-destined. Nothing out of consistency happened.

 ***** **Ben Tennyson/ *Alpha.:**

From the special cross-over episode with Ben-10. Also one of my favourite episodes. =D


	40. Restarting Relations

**Chapter 40: Restarting Relations**

(Rex tries to settle into this world, struggling to repair old wounds and make reconnections, and discovers unsettling news that does not bode well)

* * *

Rex does his best on missions, working double time with fervor. Whether or not this dimension was real and legitimately his world or not, didn't change his mindset of wanting to help. He knew he couldn't make up for lost time of the Other-him, but whilst he was here, he made a solemn promise to make the most of it to aid his comrades as best as he could.

Over just one week, he learnt it wasn't just Time-bots that terrorized the civilians. Bonafide super powered assassins, illegal high tech fire arms and robots were all jumbled up in a chaotic hot pot of dangerous, life threatening mess. There were multiple activation every single day, in scattered locations across the globe, spreading Providence troops thin. Rex was deeply disturbed, since he never experienced so much SOS back in his timeline. He'd a sneaking feeling that 'him' quitting Providence had much to do with it, bad guys emboldened with one powerful Nanite-Generator around to kick their ass.

He even crossed paths with Cain, which became a hair-raising, haunting battle, mostly because just several months ago, Rex had seen his head blown up right in front of his eyes, and yet here he was, battling him again. There were plenty of déjà vu moments as he battled old faces who should have been already taken down and into Providence custody, and at the same time, there were many new faces. The overall experience was strange, and unsettling.

Especially, the combat troops. He worked with them well enough, despite them armed with a new array of gadgetry and battle tactic and formation. Fighting was his instinct, so he adapted quickly to their movements and positions on the battle ground. But during off-missions, Rex found himself navigating murky waters and tripping over snaking vines whilst trying to make small talk or get to know the other officers better.

It was then Rex realized just how much he had taken a lot of things for granted. Like Noah –Noah was always there, supportive, and understanding, making wise crack jokes or saying the right things at the right moments. Much unlike this Noah here, who was cold, and biting, not just to Rex, he realized, but even to the other staff. Whilst his old Noah always a gang of friends with him, chattering, laughing, having friendly banters, this Noah walked alone. Everyone seemed to keep two arm's length parameter from him, and he barely spoke more than two words to anyone, if necessary. He was thrice as severe and unfriendly as Six ever was, which was extremely daunting.

Noah wasn't the only one carrying winter's frost. The rest of the combat officers were about as warm as winter's morning. Like Matthew, Rex found many old comrades turned against him, still in disbelief, warring between trusting him or not. Beverly was another one who avoided him like the plague, whilst Matthew took the chance to call him 'bastard' every time they crossed paths.

Many more staff were new to Rex, having not seen them before, but they too, were mostly unfriendly and stand offish. They barely spoke to each other, keeping to a few friends, but even then, the sound of laughter was like a golden bell that Rex never heard. To top it off, Rex discovered the small scuffle Kenwyn and Matt had, was just one of the many wrangles that keep happening within these walls amongst other staff.

Things were never like this where he came from. Sure there were squabbles and disputes, and punches were thrown every now and then, but never as often as the rate it was now. It was a rude shock to Rex, and disappointing to know that though Providence still existed, it didn't feel like Providence anymore. There was this general hostility and unfriendliness choking and permeating the place, giving Rex the sense that things had got this way for a long time.

He thought about the officers he knew, wondering what had happened to them. None of the new recruits like Ronny or Tio were there– understandably since they might not have wanted to join the restructured Providence. Much to his chagrin, many of the older-timers were not here either. When Rex asked around the remained old timers, none of them wanted to talk about their pals who had quit. They looked scalded, and barked at him to 'kindly fuck off'. Matthew, was especially scathing, warning Rex to never mention that 'cowardly traitor' unless he wanted a nanite disruptor staked between his eyes. Needless to say, Rex gave up asking any of the rest. Instead, he pestered Human Resources, and only then, he found out that they either quit or was forced to leave after the major restructuring.

With the gloomy way things looked and not having anyone to talk about this, Rex decided to look up his own comrades if they could shed some light. Hence, he secretly downloaded contact files from Human Resource database and stole the numbers of his closer friends. Luckily, Providence still kept all their records even when they had retired as normal civilians. Cody's number unfortunately, was a dupe. So he tried Nathan's. Just entering Nathan's number midway, a contact name 'Nate' popped up in his mobile, surprising Rex that 'he' had his number. Anyway, he rang him.

When Nathan picked, he sounded surprised and commented it had been a long time since Rex last called. When he asked Rex what was up, Rex told him he had something urgent to talk about that night.

"Aww, man, tonight's no good. I have dinner plans with my babe," Nathan drawled.

" _Please_ , Nathan, it's urgent. I really need to talk to you," Rex pleaded, not able to wait another day.

"I can't, I've been doing a lot of overtime recently and only have tonight finally free. If I cancel, my babe is gonna be cross with me."

"Nathan, please, this is about Providence."

"Yea, _I know_. I mean, since _when_ was our meeting never about Providence?"

Nathan's tone and choice of words made Rex feel there was something odd about it. But he figured he could ask when they meet up.

"Well, _tonight_ , you'll probably hear me spinning a _different_ story."

"Hmmm…" Nathan trailed off on the other line.

"Alright, but it will have to wait till after my romantic dinner is over. Say about eleven," he finally obliged.

"Deal. Where?"

"At the usual place, I guess?"

"Where's that?"

Nathan laughed.

"Staizer, duh! It's only been a couple of months, but did you already forget?"

Rex was too surprised to reply. Why was it _Staizer_ , of all places?

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The club was already high and bobbing by the time Rex arrived. The interiors were pretty much the same – even if it were, Rex couldn't really remember. The only thing that he recognized would be his saving yacht, was the bar. There were multiple bars serving different range of drinks and to cater to the large crowd. He picked the one least swarmed with people and parked at the furthest seat, right next to the wall, and prayed good luck for anyone who approached him, because he wasn't in the mood to talk or bump into anyone else except for Nathan.

It was a horrid wait while Rex sat glumly by himself at the counter. On one hand, he had to bark down anyone who approached him. On the other, he had to fight away the *memories he had of this place with Noah. _Oh fond memories_. Rex felt the beer go down bitter and hot.

Nathan finally arrived, later than scheduled, but Rex didn't mind. Nathan looked vastly different in his civilian clothing, with a more stylish haircut in a flashy color and multiple piercings on one ear. Oddly enough, the look couldn't be more suitable. Being out of uniform suited Nathan's playful side. Aside from that, the rest of his dressing was rather tamed, with jeans and properly covered up in a tee and jacket and a scarf round his neck. Rex thought Nathan would have come in more, well, risqué dressing, considering his reputation. His thoughts derailed further, remembering someone else who'd once worn that. Catching himself thinking about Noah's infamous fishnet tee, Rex quickly shook away those thoughts, steeling himself to focus.

"Hey man, sorry I'm late," Nathan slid into the stool next to him. Rex felt waves of relief just looking at him, glad to meet another person who didn't look at him with hostility.

"What's up with that face?" Nathan frowned abit, lips twitching.

Rex swallowed a big swig of his beer in answer.

"Order something hard, you'll need it. My treat," Rex piled a couple of large bills on the counter, prompting Nathan to give him a suspicious look.

"Ah-huh," Nathan started, but didn't say anything else, ordering his drink first. Rex kept mum as well, still thinking how he should start.

Nathan was the one who asked first, as soon as the bartender delivered his drink to him.

"So what was so urgent anyway?"

Before Rex could reply, Nathan continued.

"Look, I haven't really checked in on Providence news, so if you want any dips, I have nothing for ya. Though, if you give me a day or two, I can get my old pals to sniff out something," Nathan finished with a wink then gulped his drink.

"Actually," Rex began slowly, "I just came _from_ Providence."

Nathan slammed his beer on the table top and gave a bark of laughter.

"You joker!"

But when Rex maintained his serious and grim expression, Nathan did a double take.

"No, you can't be serious, _really_? But I thought you're _banned_ from there and they're banned from having you even step foot in that place. I mean, you had like this messy 'divorce' from them."

"Yea, but here's the thing, I'm a Rex from a _different_ dimension – at least, that's what it appears."

Nathan's eyes went huge like he just fucked up his head.

Rex spent the next three hours trying to recount and summarize the main points that happened to him and how he felt. Nathan was stunned and entirely engrossed, waiting for Rex's every word, barely even touching his drink.

"Wow, man, that's crazy," Nathan breathed and rubbed his forehead when Rex was done. Then he picked up his drink and downed the rest of it in one shot.

"Man, I need another glass to take all that in, but I hope I don't go to bed drunk, and forget about all of this tomorrow."

Rex grunted. "Well, I hope _I can_."

Nathan gave him a look of sympathy.

"Sorry, man, must be hard on you."

Rex shrugged in reply, helpless.

"So how's Providence treating you?" Nathan crooked a brow.

"What do you think?" Rex eyed him wearily.

Nathan gave a twisted smile. "Warm eh? Like a pack of wolves?"

Rex snorted at his sarcastic reply.

"Something's not right, I mean, was it always like this?" Rex asked, exasperated, and took a swig of his third drink that night. "I mean, you left Providence too."

Nathan grunted, taking another swig. Rex decided to keep quiet about the fact that the Nathan in his dimension hadn't quit Providence, since it seemed 'this' Nathan would be happier doing without that knowledge.

When Nathan made no further comment, Rex went ahead to keep talking. He shared the troubling atmosphere he'd found, the thing that prompted him to find Nathan in the first place. That comradely bond, that atmosphere of kinship and friendship was gone. A lot of guys were like Matthew, scathing, and unkind.

Nathan downed a huge chug before exclaiming.

"Hah! Yea well, everyone's pretty much turned into an asshole after 'you' – well, _our Rex_ left."

"I don't understand why."

"I don't either. But things just changed, Rex. Especially with Six gone at the same time, it was a double blow to us. We didn't cope very well, and it got worse. Shadow had his legs amputated in a freak battle and it just went downhill from there. Providence was failing, _failing fast_ , and getting heat from the public and the government. When the restructure started, folks were getting laid off or screamed at, for every little mishap or complaint. And I think, our failing performance just got to us. The motivation just wasn't there anymore.

Folks just got more and more angry and bitter and start sniping at each other. Suddenly no one's looking out for each other's back, only concerned for their own. It was so strangling, Rex, I just didn't feel like I could be chummy with anyone. I mean, I still had friends and not all of us were like that, but the overall atmosphere was just too depressing, so I quit."

Rex kept drinking while listening, feeling depressed, again feeling like the fault fell on his shoulders.

Rex didn't know what to say. That he's sorry? How could he apologize for something he didn't know 'he' had done? And besides, it was too late for that. Nathan said nothing either, overcome by the somber mood. Both men just drunk their beers, till they emptied their glasses, then ordered another refill.

"Did you ever… hate the Other-me? Or get mad?" Rex found the nerve to ask.

Nathan gave a twisted laugh.

"Oh hell, ya, of course, you bet'cha," then he quickly added, "But not anymore."

"So, how did 'we' patch up?"

" _How did 'we' patch up?_ Geez, don't ask me," Nathan lightly rubbed his head, looking a bit embarrassed. "Well, if I have to say," he relented quickly, and hugged his mug with both hands, "It'd have to be after 'you' called me, and told me how 'you' felt about – "

He paused right that instant, shoulders stiffening.

"What? How I felt about what?" Rex tugged his shoulder, getting anxious on Nathan suddenly going quiet.

"Sorry, brain freeze," Nathan gave a sheepish laugh, "I was saying how 'you' missed Providence."

Rex had the feeling that wasn't really what Nathan wanted to say, and it reminded him of Nathan mentioned their past meet ups which he knew nothing about.

"Right, so I used to contact you, to snoop around for Providence's gossip?"

Nathan gave a small laugh. "Well kinda, here and there."

Rex asked more questions, but Nathan's phone rang before he could answer.

"Hey Cody," he said into the phone, surprising Rex, "Yea, I'm out with a friend, at…"

He suddenly shifted a questioning gaze at Rex, as if looking for confirmation if he could tell.

At Rex's nod, Nathan continued.

"Staizer's. Yea, you know it's who. I know. Won't be too late. See you babe."

"Boy, he'll sure be surprised when I tell him what happened with you. That is uh, I could tell him, right?"

Rex shrugged.

"So long as it stays between the two of you."

Nathan made a show of zipping his lips, prompting Rex to laugh lightly.

"So, you have his contact huh. You know, I found a dud when I ran through Providence's contact directory."

"Hah! Of course, after the shithole it has become, Cody doesn't want them ever contacting him again."

Rex was sure Matthew was also part of that reason, but he decided against prying, feeling like it was too much depressing talk for one night.

"Makes sense. Well, I'm glad to know you guys are still tight," Rex nodded to himself, "You meeting him later?

Nathan cocked a brow and smirked in the way Rex recognized, finally looking exactly like the haughty friend who liked hanging around teasing everyone. Rex was secretly glad to see that, otherwise, he felt something had still been missing from his friend, since Nathan had been unusually mellow all night, somehow tamed.

"Actually, I'm going home, to _our bed_."

It took two seconds for his words to sink in. Rex's brows shot off his forehead, prompting Nathan to hoot in laughter.

"You're- _you're together_?" Rex was shocked.

"Yea, we're lovers," Nathan confirmed.

"Jesus, how did _that_ happen?"

Nathan shrugged.

"A twist of fate." Then he took a last swig, finishing his glass.

"Twist of fate, huh, lucky you," Rex couldn't stop a depressed sigh from escaping, "Bad luck for me though, I'm getting shit faced and blamed for everything."

Nathan stared at him, eyeing him up and down. "Yea well, of course. I mean, _shit_ , even if you're telling me you're a _different_ Rex, I just can't see you any differently."

Rex groaned and melted further into his stool.

Nathan patted his back.

"Hey, hey, c'mon, get out of that depressed mode."

When Rex sunk his chin onto the table, Nathan gripped his chin and forced him to face upwards.

"C'mon Rex, look, I know they're making it like everything bad that happened was 'your' fault. But don't get stressed about it. In fact, funnily enough, I think everyone took 'your' presence for granted. The past is over, Rex. Now that you're here, maybe you can make it so everyone remembers what is important, and what counts."

Rex felt his eyes watering, but he laughed to himself instead, never imagining he would hear such a serious, uplifting speech from the usually playful Nathan. He then nodded, thanking him, before Nathan called it a night.

Right before they parted ways, Rex had one last question to ask.

"Wait, just curious, why did we always only meet here?"

Nathan showed a sad smile.

"Because this is the only place you could see him without being spotted. And you never had the guts to come here to spy on him on your own… though, it's tough luck for you today, because he didn't show tonight."

Without even him mentioning the name, Rex instinctively knew who Nathan talked about.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Trying his best, gave Rex some success. After another week, Rex could see more combat officers warming up to him, even looking like they had an actual spirit rather than being soulless zombies.

 _Soon_ , Rex told himself. Soon, things will be better. Some people needed more convincing, like Matthew for example. Matthew was still anal, words and attitude become so brash that he was nearly a different person. Even with Rex out of the picture, Rex observed that Matthew was so much more serious, not cracking even a single joke. The only thing that was a semblance to the 'original' Matt who was always easy-going, and a real pal Rex could go to for company when he was bored, was the firm nods and greetings Matt offered his colleagues when he passed by them.

Despite the slow improvement, Rex told himself to be patient. Things couldn't remain dire forever. Like what Nathan said, Rex could make a difference, and getting there, meant being patient.

But what the hell, who was he kidding? Rex was never really good at being patient. By the time another week rolled around, Rex was tired of getting insulted unfairly. So when Matthew's taunts came like usual when they passed each other during lunch, he cut Matthew short in the middle of the cafeteria, snapping at him to shut up.

Matthew jolted abit, as if surprised that Rex finally spoke up for himself.

"Look, I know you don't believe it _wasn't me_ , who quit. I mean, granted, who could really be sure how my time, or your time got fucked, right? –So for all we know, maybe 'I' really _did_ quit after the heinous time fuck."

Rex spoke loudly, enough to catch the attention of many heads, who turned to them, "So yea, you gripe about it. _I get it._ You called me a 'traitor' for running away. Then how about now? I'm back here, aren't I? So tell me, what am I supposed to be called now that I'm here, _fighting alongside_ you?"

Matthew bared his teeth, fists clenched by his side, looking ready to strike.

"You won't buy me over just flashing around your fancy nanites abilities."

"You're not answering the question."

Matthew struck out that instant, patience left him. Rex saw it coming, but let him hit him anyway, body holding a firm stance so that only his face was snapped to the side.

Rex slowly turned back to face Matthew. Matthew seemed almost shocked that he landed a strike, and looked perplexed why Rex never bothered to block. Rex could see these emotions warring across his face, and willed for his friend to understand.

"You don't know the answer?" Rex asked again, loudly, but kept his tones level and controlled so that he wouldn't sound angry.

"Then let me tell you, 'comrade' – that's what we called each other, in and out of the battlefield. And long before, that had a _real_ meaning."

Matthew looked incensed, but at the same time, something was shaking within his gaze as they locked eyes.

"Yea, it did, until you left us, and then _one, by one_ , others _left_ too."

A tiny tremor on the last phrase, gave away the broken, despaired man beneath that angry mask. Rex felt his chest twisting in pity and sadness all together. Oh poor Matthew, poor everyone, who had to bear with seeing their comrades leave them, one by one. They wanted their friends to stay on with the fight, but seeing so many leave, left them despondent, and betrayed. But that agony had blinded them – all the old timers, so wrapped up in their hurt that they _neglected_ building relations with their juniors. And there were so many too – half of the combat officers were new faces Rex didn't recognize. How could they overlook them, and let the Combat Division's bonding spirit die away?

"Yea, let's take it that I have no excuse for leaving, and no excuse either who those who left. But what excuse do you have, for giving cold shoulders to those _new ones_ who joined? Aren't they taking the place of those who left?"

Matthew flinched slightly, as if afflicted by Rex's words.

"They fought alongside you as well, for how many years? Three, maybe five, or six years? That's long enough to become sworn brothers. Did you forget one of Combat Division's guiding principles?"

Rex swept a gaze past Matthew, across the entire canteen, which by now, had every pair of eyes on him, listening to his voice which he hadn't bothered to keep low.

" _Alone, I am nothing, I am weak. Together, we are strong. Together, we are mighty. In Providence, we bond_." Rex said aloud to all of them, "Do you guys truly understand the meaning? Do you even know, what the rest of the principles are?"

Silence met him, vexing Rex. But he forced himself to maintain a steady and calm tone.

"No? You've forgotten? Then let me remind you, ' _In battle, my comrade_ ," Rex began, commanding their attention, voice ringing out loud and clear.

" _In meal times, my brother. In sorrow, my counsel. In difficulties, my guide. In happiness, my friend. In sickness, my doctor. In darkness, my light. In pain, my support._ "

Rex continued steadily, line by line, then someone suddenly joined in, shaky, but still clear and strong enough to be carried across the entire cafeteria. A third joined in, faintly at first, but quickly became stronger. Then gradually, more guys pick up the chant, then more and more, until they became a chorus, voice resonating, reverberating the air around them, humming against their skin, sending goose bumps on Rex's arms. They became a force of unity, of one voice, chanting all forty-eighty lines.

Rex felt his heart racing even when they finished. He was breathing so hard, chest heaving like the rest of the combat officers. And he was shaking, this feeling bubbling within him, so overpowering that Rex felt like bursting and collapsing at the same time.

Rex was surprised he still kept it together, nodding firmly.

"Good, so all of you do remember, then I hope, you'll understand it with your hearts as well."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Maybe Rex's words have gotten to them, or his selflessness and sincerity shown during battle, of jumping in the fray to protect their backs, or it could be his persistence in chatting them up during off-missions.

Either way, Rex felt the edginess gradually wearing away. Smiles ghosted easily on the corners of people's lips, and gazes were warm, and tones less harsh when they spoke to each other. The air felt lighter, seen from how many of them started walking with a spring on their step, with liveliness to their movements.

Rex was relived, even more so, when Beverly sat on the same eating table as Rex on her own, without Rex inviting her. She still didn't talk to him, but to Rex, at least it was a step of improvement. Matthew was a little more awkward around him. He no longer said anything mean – in fact, he didn't say another peep to Rex, but his gaze has softened, and no longer scowled on seeing him.

By the time the combat officers started to cheer when they completed a mission, Rex was surprised himself, that things turned a one-eighty faster than he expected. He was miles relieved and glad, sure that Providence was going to go back on track.

Only one person remained, as sour as a Grinch, as untouchable as a shard of ice. Since Noah remained the only one looking pissed off whilst everyone else cheered, Rex decided he had enough. Once they returned to HQ, Rex charged up to Noah when he was alone in the upper levels where the lieutenants bunked. Caught off guard, Noah wasn't able to retaliate in time before Rex gripped his wrist and held them above his head.

"Fuck you, let me go, I'm warning you," Noah seethed, though he remained oddly calm, not even trying to struggle. Rex knew Noah could have very well kicked Rex away, but he somehow let himself be backed up against the wall, glaring back with eyes that burned like hot coal.

"Tell me, why are you still mad at me?" Rex demanded to know, huffing with crazed impatience at the sheer number of times he must have repeated himself to various people. "You know I'm different –different from the 'Rex' you knew."

" _Different?"_ Noah repeated incredulously, "Not for the first twenty years you're not."

Rex grinded his teeth, boring liquid hot gaze into him, because hell was blazing beneath his lips.

"Why are you so stubborn? Look, I'm sorry it happened –Whatever I did, or didn't do in _your_ past, because of some screwed-up timeline, or space-jump in mine. You hated that I wasn't here. But now that I am, why are you stubbornly holding onto the past? Your men have started to move on, so should you."

Noah gave a twisted laugh.

"Yea, about that – I heard you gave _quite_ the invigorating speech a while back. And though I hate to admit it, I'm forced to say it's much commendable how you _swayed_ the hearts of the Combat Division, bringing their spirits up. Was this how it was supposed to be like, before I joined?" Noah drawled sarcastically, every word sickeningly and deliberately patronizing, tone acidic.

Rex felt him chest tighten, infuriated, but did not speak, allowing Noah to continue.

"You think, you can just _waltz in_ and 'undo' what _he_ has done?" Noah seethed.

"I'm just trying to make up for it."

Noah laughed hoarsely, lips twisted, then cocked his head.

"Too bad, not everyone's wounds are as easy to heal."

Then suddenly, Rex was twisted around and in a swift move, Noah clicked something chunky and white on his wrist. Rex suddenly noticed it was the same as what Circe wore, just that it blended into the white armour of Noah's uniform so Rex never noticed it before. Oddly enough, Rex felt a strange sensation, like he was weakening.

Noah gave a cruel laugh before it clicked in Rex's head.

"A nanite disruptor?" Rex was appalled Noah would use something like that on him for a second time.

"Similar. It's an upgraded version to the *inhibitor collars."

"Get it off me," Rex demanded weakly, stumbling slightly, such that he had to lean to the opposite side of the corridor for support. He didn't know why he was weakened so until he saw Noah produce a small controller in view, thumbing a small black device, no doubt controlling the intensity of the disruptive wave.

"I will, but not before you remember this feeling of helplessness," Noah said cruelly.

"You think you are all powerful, don't you? No, you're not," Noah spat, "When you were gone, we had to come up with ways to overpower the relapsing EVO freaks that normal weapons couldn't deal with."

Rex felt his head pound from Noah's words, aghast that even in this timeline, EVOs were relapsing. Rex thought the troubles came from elsewhere, since till date, he hasn't come across any EVOs here. But weakened and out of breath, Rex couldn't find the energy to ask.

"Stop," that was all Rex could manage to say.

"You think you are useful. Well, you are. But you should be aware that now, you're not Providence's most powerful weapon anymore."

Rex promptly sagged and slid to the floor, having lost all strength from Noah's verbal attack.

 _Weapon?_ Noah called him, a weapon? Rex could cry. Noah would never. But he did, and it hurt so much, he wanted to die.

"Rex? Noah?" Kenwyn's voice floated in before he saw her.

She was on Noah in a flash, trying to snap the controller from Noah's hand. He was too fast for her though, twisting out the way, tossing the small device to three paces away, where he spun to and deftly caught it again within his palms.

"Noah, don't make me do this," Kenwyn warned, face darkening, taking up a fighting stance.

Noah stared back coolly and uncaring.

"Noah!" she barked, "C'mon, cut this out! Why are you still being such as asshole to him? I thought you have heard his recording. You should already know, that he is a _different_ Rex. He's not the same as the 'Rex' who abandoned us, Noah!"

Noah scowled that instant, dropping the device at her feet.

"Sorry, I don't listen to bullshit," his words dripped like hot lava off a cliff, "And I don't need him around to sully my day." Then he spun on his heel and left, leaving Kenwyn to hurry to Rex to get the bracelet off.

"Rex, are you okay?"

Rex panted, chest heaving. He felt miles better, weight lifted off his body, strength returning. His chest still hurt from Noah's words, but he ignored it, other pressing matters taking forefront in his mind.

"I'm okay, but I need to see Caesar, _now_."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Yes," Caesar confirmed Rex's nightmare of the world shaking up with relapsing EVOs, and it was _Déjà vu_ for Rex all over again.

 _Why?_ Why here as well? He thought his biggest problem here was Time-Meta EVO. But eerily enough, EVO relapses were happening here, caused by Modifier working with some zealots obsessed about bio-evolution.

"Then the reason why I haven't come across any EVOs – does this bracelet have anything to do with it?" Rex pointed at Noah's bracelet, which Kenwyn held in her hand.

"Yes," Holiday confirmed as well.

At Rex's further questions, Caesar explained that the bracelets released a minute charge to keep the nanites dormant, preventing them from relapsing. And if it detects active nanites, such as the ones inside Rex, it will release a wave to affect it, weakening the wearer. That function could also be remote controlled like what Noah did to Rex.

As Rex listened to the scientists' explanations, his frustrations wore away, becoming hopeful when they finished.

"No way, I can't believe you've found an alternative cure," Rex said breathily, mind racing, realizing if he could somehow, get this tech back to his 'original' timeline, then…

"No, it's not. Not in the long run," both of them refuted, looking aghast that he would suggest it, shattering Rex's hope.

"What? Why not?"

Both scientists heaved a heavy sigh and suddenly looked glum and defeated, mirroring each other as if they were twins.

"Actually, I was adamantly against this," Caesar reiterated, "It's a refinement of Doctor Brandon's tech, which is genius, no doubt, but it has drawbacks. Unfortunately, Homeland Security rolled it out as a temporary solution to prevent another EVO pandemic. It is the only thing that could suppress nanite re-activation, preventing folks from turning EVO. They even passed a law that made it mandatory for those who turned EVO before, to wear it at all times, since it was easier for them to revert to EVO."

"So then, what exactly is so bad about it?" Rex asked impatiently.

"Because it has a bad effect of disrupting normal heart rhythm, putting the wearer at higher risk of heart attack by over 50 percent if worn over a periodic time. The results aren't conclusive yet as we hadn't enough time to completely analyze all the effects and risk. More recently though, we think we may have come across a few cases where upon EVO relapse, the strong charges unleashed caused the wearer to immediately go into cardiac arrest."

Rex felt anger flood him, wanting to grab and shake Caesar by his collar, yet instinct and trust in his brother, told him that it wasn't Caesar who invented the device. The *inhibitor collars were one thing – but this, something that so dangerously afflicted someone's health, was not something his brother was capable of doing.

"Please tell me this, wasn't done by you," Rex searched for affirmation.

"No Rex, it wasn't Caesar," Holiday stressed, "– Homeland Security appointed other research facilities to create it and allowed them to bulk manufacture it before we even knew what they were doing."

"This is wrong, so, _so wrong_. We _have_ to do something."

"We are, Rex. Our Science division is working day and night over this to gather conclusive evidence and results, enough so that we can bring this to the government and shut down this device."

"That's not enough. How many people's lives will be put at risk in the meantime? Why didn't you tell me about something like this? Why didn't anyone? Why is everyone _keeping quiet_ about this?"

The other three looked at each other, lost for excuses.

"Rex, I'm sorry, it's just, there have been a lot of things going on," Kenwyn apologized, finally speaking up after standing quietly by the side, initially letting the scientists talk since they were the experts on Nanite and EVO matters.

"And since there weren't any EVO cases at the forefront, it just never crossed our minds to tell you," Holiday added on apologetically.

"Well, you should have thought of it. Because I could cure them," Rex reminded them pointedly, trying not to glare. I mean, I had a seventy-thirty success rate but still, at least I could help." He crossed his arms over his chest, shuffling his weight from one feet to the other in agitation.

But the three of them exchanged another look, making Rex worry.

"Well, I guess we could have you try," Caesar began, but Rex had already caught their unconfident look.

"Forget it, you think I can't cure them, don't you? That's why none of you bothered to tell me."

Their silence only confirmed his suspicions.

"How? Tell me how you are so sure?" Rex asked dryly, every nerve ending in his body tightening.

"I had sneaked out specimens to ask for your, well, I mean, our 'Rex's' help – discreetly, of course. Not even White Knight knew, nor Circe, for that matter," Caesar recounted solemnly, then flashed a quick glance at Kenwyn as if to silently tell her to keep this secret.

"In the beginning, the results were fifty-fifty. But gradually, through the years, the nanite mutation had gone so far down the line that it was just beyond curing."

Rex was silent for the longest time, eyes darting rapidly between the three of them so fast till his vision blurred, so he had to squeeze shut his eyes to get a hold of himself.

"Rex! Your lips are bleeding!" Holiday exclaimed, bringing Rex's attention that he had bit his lips so hard that it broke the skin, though he hadn't even realized it.

Holiday rushed to dap the tiny drops of blood oozing from the corner of his lips, with a tissue she deftly produced from the breast pocket of her lab coat.

Rex didn't mean to, but he lightly pushed her hand away, not caring about the blood and some torn skin. A little wound like that was insignificant to him, and the only thing weighing on his mind right now, which ought to take precedence above all else, was only one thing.

"Then let _me_ try – maybe I will have better chances of curing them."

Caesar – the ever skilled actor at masking his emotions, failed this time – uncertain gaze in his eyes betraying his true thoughts despite his firm nod of agreement.

Holiday was openly doubtful, telling him straightforwardly that she wasn't keen on him forcing it least it puts him in danger.

Before he could say anything else to assert his intentions, a long and unheard of siren, different from all the other days, sounded over Providence alert.

The announcement and orders that quickly came over through command center resolved the disparity of that alarm sound, which was to specially mark the mission detail as different from the rest: _EVOs, attacking, rampaging through one of the countryside towns._

Rex had a wry, inward smile. Some higher power in the universe was twistedly answering to his call. Was it some kind of divine test? Or torture that was heaven's idea of a perverse joke?

 ** _To be continued…_**

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

*memories he had of this place with Noah: In chapter 11, Noah first brought him to Staizer (a gay club), on the tip that an illegal nanite patch trading ring was making operations there.

 ***inhibitor collars:**

From the original cartoon. Providence originally had the collars that delivers an electric jolt to unruly EVOs. When Black Knight took over, Caesar was made to modify the device such that it brainwashed EVOs completely, making them fully compliant to Providence.


	41. Finding Sanctuary

**Chapter 41: Finding Sanctuary**

(Rebuilding relations is hard, but Rex is not giving up. Till finally it looks like the frosty Noah is warming up to him~)

* * *

The truth hit him twice as hard, even if he'd already gone through the realities once. But having to face his failure of curing EVOs in a parallel dimension as well, was altogether too depressing. Still, Rex forced himself not to fall into his wretched emotions – no matter, now that he was here, he would still lend his strength in whatever way he could.

Besides, even if the troops were armed with the technology to deal with the EVOs, it was still tough battle for them to hit the beastly target, whilst dodging and defending themselves against the EVO's aggressive attacks. Furthermore, just that morning, some of the officers faced a mob of illegal attack bots and they were fairly worn out.

In an afternoon of clear blue skies over a picturesque town, the idyllic accompanying scene that should follow was marred by the EVOs they had to tackle. They faced a horde of giant animal EVOs with an intimidating combination of a mole-rat and a lion. They were about 1.5 times the size of water buffalos, with huge two front incisors– length running about half a human's height, with a mane of dangerous spikes – each the thickness of a rattan cane – striped with rainbow colors, warning of its poison. Or rather, the frightening serum it carried that when pierced through a living organism, would re-activate the dormant nanites inside, turning the unlucky creature or person EVO.

That was how they grew to a twenty-odd horde. Reports clearly specified the appearance of only one – but the unlucky townsfolk who were pierced, joined their numbers. It was lucky that the Evac team got most of townspeople evacuated quickly via jet planes, so there weren't a much bigger number. Otherwise, it would have been far too overwhelming.

Just the way the EVOs rampaged through the quaint countryside houses looked like a page from a dark, twisted, medieval tale from mutation horror hell. They charged into vehicles and into corners of buildings, puncturing and piercing through metal and concrete easily, painting sure gut-frightening confirmation of the many ways someone could die.

Just one jaw over any part of someone, its teeth was sure to cut through flesh, tendon and bone, snapping and tearing any part of the human body. And with one swing of its head, it could pierce through anyone as easily as a needle through a rag doll.

It was heart stopping and absolutely terrifying, even more so than when Rex first tackled the Mondo-EVO-Bull, especially now that so many of his comrades' lives were involved.

Having tried but failed to cure them, Rex picked up on defense instead. He kept the team shielded with his force shield from attacks like vicious head butts, and flying vehicles and trees that the EVOs picked up or uprooted with their strong teeth and flung over every now and then. He also aided in offence by electric shocking the EVOs to stun them or weaken them by punching and kicking them head on with supersized, nanites fists and boots. In between his clashes and defenses, the other combat officers rained several rounds of tranquilizers and paralyzing bullets to render the beasts unconscious or immobile.

It was a tough battle, but with good coordination and teamwork, Providence managed to tackle them one by one. Even Noah, despite being hostile towards Rex outside of missions, was fully co-operative with Rex, as like the way it was in previous missions thus far. Which was one reason that it gave Rex hope that he still had a chance to turn things around with him.

Noah bounded about impressively and engaged the Rat-lions fearlessly without hesitation. Looking at him, Rex was sure Noah could be a one-man show, much like the legendary Six. Yet, Noah still coordinated with the rest of the officers, skillfully commanding them, yet trusting them enough to let them veer off on their own methods of tackling the Rat-lions. Noah also included Rex within his commanding parameters, speaking volumes of Noah's leadership. He could very well ignore Rex's presence, but like Captain Calan, Noah kept observation on Rex's position, guiding Rex on where the Rat-lions were open for attack, and warning which officer needed immediate defense.

Rex was inwardly surprised that even seven years in the future, albeit a Noah from another timeline, they were still able to work so well together during missions. If Noah was surprised or had softened his opinion, he didn't show, so Rex didn't know when Noah will finally warm up to him. Even after several missions together thus far, Noah stilled faced Rex like the Grinch during off-missions.

In no time that afternoon, the beasts fell one by one to heavy thuds along the half-thrashed town. As each monster rat-lion was successfully tackled, combat officers would quickly snap inhibitor collars and braces over the EVO's neck and limbs to tone down their aggression and limiting their nanites activity.

The team lightened considerably, faces much more relieved from when they first started out. There left only one Rat-lion EVO, so it was a piece of cake to take down. Planting his hands on his hips, Rex allowed himself a quirky smile as he saw the triumphant smiles on many of the combat officers' faces.

"Well, looks like they're all down."

The officers nodded back, faces as bright as the sunny sky above them.

"Many thanks to you. It couldn't have gone easier, with you around."

Rex felt his chest puffing up with happiness on hearing one of the officers thank him, but reminded himself to not get carried away. He wasn't going to claim the credit, but he was happy that they appreciated his help, and saw that he added value to the team.

"Everyone has their role to play," Noah said aloud before Rex could respond, tone even, so Rex couldn't detect if Noah meant anything criticizing under his words.

"And I'm glad the mission went well today," he nodded firmly, giving Rex some measure of happiness on his acknowledgement.

He went on asking for casualty reports and gave remaining orders to get the EVOs properly contained for transport, calling back headquarters to make necessary arrangements.

Rex took that time to approach one of the fallen Rat-lions, touching its snout wishfully.

 _Please, if only, let me try just this once again._

Rex wished desperately as he tried again to read the frenzied, evolved nanites that triggered the mutation, trying to reach a permutation to deactivate it.

 _Please, let this work._

Rex begged inwardly with all the strength and will of his heart and mind.

 _"_ _Rex! Watch out!"_

He heard Noah's frantic yell, then felt himself pushed aside violently. Caught without warning, Rex stumbled sideways and fell into the dirt, just as a half-grunt of pain erupted next to him, sending Rex's blood running cold.

 _No, Noah!_

Rex whipped around to find a lethal spike pierced through Noah's left shoulder.

Rex made a crazed howl that he didn't even know he was capable of producing, and broke the spike with a single crush of his fist, before spinning round to deal a heavy, supersized leg down over the EVO's head. He bashed the Rat-lion's head onto the mud of the grassy patch they were on, rendering it unconscious from his blow.

The rest of the officers cursed and dared to scramble closer once it was unmoving, checking the inhibitor devices, then informed that the collar piece was faulty, hence the EVO was able to resist a bit and attack. While they cased a new one over it, Rex turned to his fallen friend, diving down on his knees, heart squeezed with unbearable tightness.

"Noah, Noah!" Rex screamed, picking him by his shoulders, laying his back over his thigh.

Noah's face was white as sheet, lips blue, and shivering, fringe wet and matted down over his forehead.

He gave Rex a weak glance before his eyelids fluttered close, falling into unconsciousness.

"No, Noah, stay with me, c'mon man. _Stay with me_!" Rex cried in frenzy, not able to keep the panic from his tone,

The medical officer accompanying their mission, raced to the front and dived down opposite Rex. He surrounded the entry point of the wound with thick dressing.

"I'll hold him. You, pull out the spike. As smoothly and as quickly as you can!" the doctor ordered.

Rex grimaced and pulled out the spike in one deft move.

Noah let out a tortured cry, chest jerking upwards from the motion then sunk back down, slack.

"Noah!"

"Keep calm, Rex," the medical officer chided, eyeing him crossly, then returned to check Noah's vitals. The rest of the officers surrounded them, watching on anxiously as their lieutenant was down. Suddenly, Noah started convulsing violently as if the devil had got him and was wrangling to steal his soul.

"No, it's happening – he's changing!" a combat officer cried as he looked on, letting out a horrified gasps.

"No, he's not," the medical officer clarified, "He has his bracelets on. The charges released are effectively impeding the nanites mutations within him."

"Then what's happening with him?" Rex growled impatiently.

The medical officer looked across him with a grim eye.

"He's having a heart attack."

The other officers gave cries of despaired gasps, knowing what was happening. The inhibitor bracelets were releasing charges that fought the evolving nanites within Noah, and whilst that was a good thing, the conflict was putting too much stress on the heart muscle.

"Shit! The damn bracelets! Take them off, now!" Rex roared and threw his hand over it, but Matthew suddenly bent right over his shoulders, catching his wrist in a vice-like grip.

"You can't. If you do, then Noah will succumb to relapse."

"I don't care! If I don't remove the bracelets, he'll die!"

"But he _will_ care– he will hate to live out the rest of his life as an EVO – that's why he chose to wear that bracelet in the first place. You, of all people, should understand that."

Rex glared frustratedly between Noah and Matthew, eaten by the truth of his words. Knowing Noah, Rex knew he would likely choose death over the curse of remaining an EVO for all his life. Despite knowing that, there was no way that Rex could just let him die!

"Oh for christ's sake! Rex! Don't hesitate!" Kenwyn yelled at him, "Just get the bracelets off and cure him – I believe you can do it!"

Her words helped Rex make his decision.

Matthew hardened his jaw, gaze flickering to Kenwyn and back to Rex again, brows furrowed so hard that valleys formed on his forehead, telling Rex that he read Rex's determined gaze.

For a moment, Rex thought he would have to fight Matthew off to get to Noah, but surprisingly, Matthew released his arms and just gave a hard, resigned look.

"Do your thing, Nanite Generator. But don't let your best friend down again."

Rex trembled despite his outward show of confidence, fear never gripping him as tightly as it did that moment.

In a swift move, he removed Noah's bracelet, inciting his pulse to escalate further. Noah would have mutated, but it was kept under control as in a crazy act, one in which Rex hasn't done in a _long_ time– he willed the wildly evolving nanites inside Noah to enter _him_ instead.

The rush of the over-zealous, activated nanites flooding him, drove him wild with pain and struggle. It had been too long, so he nearly forgot the feeling of how it was when he used to cure EVOs by absorbing the rampant nanites into himself.

The flesh on his arms grew from the swarm of rampant nanites, mutating out of control - the sensation a long, near forgotten one. His heart raced, his blood galloped, his nanites themselves rose like an ocean of horses racing through every inch of his body, clashing with Noah's uncontrolled nanites. Millions of minute sparks sizzled within him as they fired zillion bits of code from Rex's Omega-1 in an attempt to override Noah's transmuted nanites.

Rex could hear and feel his bones cracking, and skin tearing, and nerves stretching and rerouting painfully as he mutated. It must look terrifying to the onlookers, as their cries and shouts of shock and horror could be heard, but whilst it appeared to happen very quickly, to Rex, it felt like a slow, arduous battle where the rest of the world has slowed down and disappeared away, leaving just him, Noah and their nanites.

He didn't know if he breathed, chest so tight and at bursting point, like a balloon stretched with helium and about to pop. He could die at any moment if he lost control, or succumb to becoming a mutated EVO himself. However he kept some semblance of internal control, keeping his organs shielded from Noah's unrestrained nanites.

Finally, he could feel the tide turning after a long standstill battle. Vigor renewed, Rex pressed on, pushing forward, cleaning up the violent nanites and assimilating them into his own. His breaths came out in measured intakes, mind clearing from the painful chaos, charging blood slowing to normal pace, flesh reverting to his human form.

 _It was done._

Rex could leap for joy that he had cured Noah by some miracle _and_ retain his human side. But exhausted from his ordeal, he remained rooted on his knees, one arm bracing Noah's shoulder. All he needed, all he wanted at that point, was to see those beautiful crystal blue eyes, be it a cold, flashing glare – Rex didn't mind.

"Noah, _wake up_ , tell me you're alright."

Noah's eyelids burst open and he swallowed a huge intake of air, chest heaving, before he relaxed into Rex's arm, still shaking abit, but with his pulse back to normal.

He looked up at Rex as if in a daze, but he knew enough what was going on.

"Rex, you _cured_ me?" Noah sounded in disbelief.

Rex didn't reply, just closed his other arm over him and hugged him tightly in relief.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

After that episode of curing Noah, if Rex thought their relationship would improve, he couldn't be more wrong. Noah was outright avoiding him completely. The moment Noah saw him anywhere – along the corridors, or in the canteen, the blond would about-turn immediately. It was so painfully obvious, Rex felt so tortured by the restlessness of wanting to know why Noah was damning him hell.

He thought Noah would appreciate him curing him. Thought Noah might offer them a friendly nod or gaze. Well, guess he expected too much. And hell, it pissed Rex off, bad.

Needing a second opinion, or hoping to have someone be their peacemaker, he went to Kenwyn.

She raised brows at his request, looking like he'd asked her to marry an elephant.

"C'mon, Kenwyn, help me. I don't want things with Noah to stay this way forever," Rex persuaded.

She heaved a sigh.

"Yea, me neither. But you're barking up the wrong tree. No one can try to change Mr. Snowman's mind. But I will say this, Noah's definitely edgy and tensed all week. I'm sure he's just trying to come to terms, you know, after you saved his ass."

"Really? You think so? You think he'll finally let bygones be bygones?" Rex dared to sound a little hopeful but Kenwyn, ever direct and blatant, squashed his hopes flat with a critical crook of her eyebrow.

"No, I'm not saying he's gonna forgive you," then her gaze softened and she crossed her arms, rubbing her lower lip with a finger in contemplation.

In a while, she continued, "But he's definitely disturbed and rattled by you, and this time, I can say it's a good thing, because he's gone every night to some city, blowing off steam."

Rex didn't need to ask her where. He had a nagging feeling he knew exactly the place.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

It was insane.

Watching 'Adonis' – the name Noah's worshippers called him – twirling around shirtless around the metal pole on a bar top. His shirtless, undulating body painted with hypnotic splashes of color from the strobe lights, abs flexing handsomely, seducing the ocean of men clamoring for him from the floor. Like a sex god incarnate, he moved with grace and seduction, gyrating his hips, squeezing the pole in between his firm ass, sliding up and down smoothly, sending his fans into screaming frenzy.

There were three other guys dancing sexily atop the circle bar, but Noah commanded most of the attention, even though he was the only one still with his pants on. He probably needn't undress his pants anyway, for the skin tight material hugged every bulge of his perfect muscles, which he used to full effect to court attention of the mesmerized clubbers below. Opening and closing his thighs, hands running all over himself, looking lost in the throes of pleasure feeling himself yet throwing sizzling glances over the crowd, pulling them in with his enigmatic blue gaze.

Watching Noah from the back of his chanting fans, Rex was filled with absolute shock and anger. How did Noah become some famous sex god in Staizer? Not that he was against these types of entertainment, but he was livid Noah was in it. Rex was pulled from attention when some guy hung an arm over him, making suggestive comments into his ear.

Rex rejected him instantly, saying that he was only here for Noah. The other guy laughed a little dejectedly and said everyone's here for him. But oddly enough, he made an additional comment with a cheeky gaze, saying that Rex might actually get a chance with the 'Adonis'.

Curious, Rex begged to know why that was so.

"Well, because my memory's good, so though the young chap disappeared, I remembered how he looks like. And _you_ look like him."

Rex didn't ask who, knowing the answer obviously pointed to him. But it vexed him hearing the guy put his words that way.

"You know the EVO hero, don't you? He suddenly dropped off the grid. No one knows what happened or has seen him since. Providence said he was in a big uncover mission –for nine years! Can you imagine? I bet he already died but they probably covered it up. Didn't want people to know they lost their big weapon. Funny enough, I think I saw the recent news showing that he's returned – don't know how true that is."

The guy continued rambling, but Rex was only half listening. He looked at Noah –really looked at Noah. And ran pieces together in his head. Things here changed around the summer that he and Circe was supposed to break up. But some things remained the same – Noah still joined Providence instead of going acting school. Why was that? And what was that thing the guy was talking about in his monologue?

"Wait, could you run that part through me again?" Rex interrupted the guy's one sided conversation, "Why did you say I have a chance with 'Adonis' just because I looked like that EVO guy?"

He chuckled.

"You must be new around here. Because everyone knows he'll fuck you only if you looked like _Rex Salazar_."

Rex didn't need another prompt or a neon flashing sign giving him directions. He thanked the guy and elbowed his way through the crowd, earning some annoyed remarks, but he ignored them. Noah was spinning around the pole with an ankle hooked at the bottom, outer leg stretched out like a sexy feline so didn't see Rex when he reached right to the front of the bar.

Slamming the table top with a nanite-constructed fist to garner Noah's attention, Rex shouted loudly, decibel above the gasps erupting from those next to him who eyed his metal fist in shock.

"So, 'Adonis', I heard you _only_ fuck guys who look like me."

To Noah's credit, he completed his spin gracefully without slipping, but gave Rex one hell of a frosty stare. Rex didn't back down.

"In that case, wanna give the original a try?"

Noah's lips tightened.

"Fuck off!" he snarled, then smoothly picked up his shirt and was off the table, ignoring the chorus of disappointment following him.

Noah shrugged off the eager and pleading hands brushing him as he moved his way out the crowd, closely followed in step by Rex. Noah nearly bust open the exit, that led to the carpark, with the force of him swinging the door violently. Stomping down the steps, Noah turned to face him when he reached the bottom, and threw back an angry bark.

"Quit following me!"

Rex lunged for him, grabbing his arm but Noah jerked back violently and lost his footing, falling over and landing on his back on the car park floor. Rex was on him in a flash, straddling his thighs and locking both wrists over above his head on the floor. It was easier now, to overpower Noah, without the inhibitor bracelet – since Holiday ordered Noah to go without it for the time being for health reasons.

"Fuck off!" Noah growled again and struggled. Rex fought back, using his nanite strength to keep him down.

"God damn it! No! No, not until you listen, and not until you talk to me, _properly_. We _can't_ go on like this, Noah," Rex begged, voice exasperated, wanting desperately for them to mend their bonds, to understand why Noah barricaded a wall to keep him out.

It didn't matter that Rex wasn't originally the one who made decisions that made everything spiral between them. This was Noah – of a possible future that could very well be his reality from now onwards. And even if by some miracle, Caesar's theory of parallel dimensions comes true, and Rex gets to return home, he absolutely hated having to weather out this blistering relationship. After all, there was no way he could possibly look at this Noah and chuck him one side.

Those frosty, biting blue eyes – facing it, how could he possibly chuck this Noah one side? How Rex ached to melt those icy glares.

Noah stopped struggling, but he said nothing whilst seconds ticked by, as if deciding if he should relent.

" _Noah_ , please, let us talk."

Noah's pupils dilated, blues haunting and unfathomable. When he finally spoke, he sounded a bit resigned, tired.

"What do you want from me?"

"Stop being a jerk, Noah. And see _me_ for who I am."

Noah's eyes suddenly sharpened into a frosty pin point, cold and unrelenting.

"Yea, I'm seeing you. Still looks like the old Rex to me," Noah said scathingly.

"Fuck it. Stop confusing him for me. Besides, you may pull this aggrov shit, but you're not really hating him – me, whatever – You act like you don't need my apology, that you don't want me around. But honestly, if you didn't want to ever have anything to do with me again, then why were you the only one who didn't change your number?" Rex interrogated.

Since Providence shifted locations and had a restructure, it only made sense that every personnel would be made to change personal contact number. Which explained why Rex couldn't reach Holiday and later on, had to steal numbers of his old friends, from HR database. None of their numbers matched to the ones Rex knew from his own timeline. All except for Noah, which meant he was the only one who didn't change his contact.

"Answer me!" Rex pressed when Noah stubbornly remained quiet, "You kept the lifeline, just in case I'd come back, right?"

"It was just too troublesome to change it," Noah answered coldly, gaze unflinching.

"Then why pack my room? You straightened up _every single thing_ I owed when HQ moved. I could tell, you know? I know all your habits – how you like to keep things insanely tidy. And don't say you did it only because I was allowed to stay in Providence. You had that room arranged long before I even appeared – or reappeared – and I can tell because of all the dust settled on the stuff. The moment HQ moved, you had my room already straightened and ready, ready for me if I ever came back one day."

It was so terribly obvious to Rex. Under the books and sheets of paper, it was completely clean. Moving tables and wardrobes aside to check the walls behind were also clean, dust darkening only the parts outside it, showing that the furniture and items had been left that way for years.

"Tell me, you wanted me back, don't you? Despite how you're acting right now, and the things you say, you had actually _hoped_ that I would return, didn't you?"

Noah's gaze remained unflinching, locking with Rex's equally furrowed ones.

"Yea, I did. But then I got tired of waiting."

Noah twisted his hips and thighs, throwing Rex's weight off to roll them around. Rex didn't fight him, feeling weak all over again as he digested Noah's words, feeling like he'd only himself to blame. He let Noah stalk off, the sound of his heavy boots on the ground sounding like a stampede upon his head, resoundingly loud and painful to his ears. Kicking start his bike, the engine roared loudly, then Noah was gone, leaving Rex crumpled on the floor on his side.

Rex didn't chase after, needing to wallow in a couple more drinks. But the more he drunk and re-ran Noah's words and all that had happened, the more pissed he got. It must have been in the wee hours of the morning when Rex makes the resolution that he shouldn't leave things as they were. So he raced back to Providence at insane speeds, enduring cold wind slashing his hot, flushed face. He charged towards Noah's room, determined to shake Noah to his senses to put the past behind him. Hell, in the first place, Rex wasn't even really the one to be blamed anyway.

Nearing his room, Rex's acute hearing picked up on a couple of voices, and got incensed, thinking that Noah must have brought back a skank from another bar, back into his room. But before he could bang down Noah's door, he focuses and catches his own words – of the telling _his_ story, _his_ timeline.

Rex stood frozen for half a minute, wondering what to do, fist frozen inches from Noah's bedroom door. Then Rex decided to remain outside. He moved to the corridor next to his room, and slid down the wall till his bum met the cold floor, sitting at the corridor all night whilst the recording played.

Before Noah came out his room the next morning, Rex made sure to retreat, but he went to Caesar straightaway, asking about the recording of his account, wanting to know how Noah got a copy of it.

"Well, I know he requested a copy from the log room."

"Right. Do you know since when?"

"Hmm," Caesar rubbed his chin a bit, recalling, "I would say, since a week after you told us your recount."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

For that whole week after, Noah disappeared to the club, which Rex didn't have the stomach to follow. But every night after Noah returned, Rex would creep up outside his bedroom, listening to Noah replay the recording.

Sometimes, Noah didn't head out, just retire to his room after dinner and played the recording. He always fast forwarded and rewinded randomly, replaying different parts. Like he'd listen to his graduation ceremony, then skip straight to the mission against the Gravity-Meta EVO, then rewinded back to the Razarul camp at the middle east. Sometimes he repeated a particular portion continuously, like he'd listen to their time at Staizer and the drug bust mission many times in one night, then the next, listened to the crackdown at the Dome five times straight, before jumping straight to listen to another part of Rex's recount.

One pattern remained the same – that Noah listened to all the stuff that happened after that fateful summer when Circe was supposed to have dumped Rex. After the sixth night, Noah suddenly opened the door and Rex hadn't paid attention to the sound of his footsteps.

Noah glared at Rex who sat right on the wall right next to the door. He reeked of alcohol, face flushed – Rex knew he down more than five cans anyway, hearing the pop tab click open over and over.

"What are you doing here?"

Rex shot up straight to his feet.

"Listening to you replaying that 'bullshit' every night this week."

It was a minute moment, but Rex caught fluster run through Noah's face before it was replaced by his usual hard scowl.

"Fuck off," came his usual reply, and he stepped passed him, shoulder knocking into his brashly.

Rex wasn't going to let him go easy. He chased after Noah's strides in steps.

"Is it enough to convince you that _I'm_ really different?"

" _So?_ What difference does it make?!" Noah exploded as he half whirled around, veins popping along his temples twice that of White Knight, face flushed with anger, like coals burning beneath his skin. "What does it matter if you're here to take _'his'_ place?"

Rex was slightly taken back by the outburst, but didn't back down.

"Well, loads!" Rex yelled back, hands thrown up in exasperation, "I said it before! I could make right the wrongs, change things! I mean, I'm here, aren't I, with Providence, _with you_ – so why won't you accept me?"

Noah just only looked madder, chest welled up so high it looked like hot air was rising upwards and he would breathe fire like a dragon. Rex thought it was going to go down as another fruitless scream fest. Instead, Noah balled fists by his sides and turned back round, marching forwards.

 _Fine_ , he'll go at it another way.

"You know, that's not the complete story," Rex quickly huffed.

Noah barely stopped and threw back. "Not interested to know."

"Not even the part where we _kissed_ on the beach?"

Noah halted right in his steps but didn't say a word, only answering with a noticeable hitch in his breathing. Taking that as a sign of hope, Rex continued from where he was, unmoving, but legs shaking.

"That happened after some crazy shit, when a robot was gonna rape your ass with his digits," Rex recounted, licking his lips, "I basically busted in to save you, whisked you off for some healing session at Cabo Luna, and yea, that was when _you_ kissed me, briefly."

"You… didn't report that to the Panel," Noah remarked in a deceptively uncaring tone, anger suddenly mellowed.

Rex spied the tiniest tremor rolling down the middle of Noah's spine. It wouldn't be obvious to anyone else but Rex. Noah, was affected by this revelation. And Rex intended to use it to his advantage.

"Of course not. Not stuff like that, that were _that_ private. And that's not the only thing I kept from Providence."

Rex made small, slow steps towards his back.

"Not unless you don't mind me telling them how you kissed me when I came back from Circe's and Skwydd's wedding, or when we kissed in a hidden closet at Donny J's place. Or how I became _hard_ just having you see me naked in the shower, after we came back from the Razarul mission."

Noah's head turned further, inch by inch, achingly slowly, like a robot in desperate need of oiling its hinges at the neck.

"Or how, just before a Gravity-powered robot attacked us, I was horny as hell, _kissing_ you, and _desperate_ to fuck you."

Noah made the full turn around, eyes wide in disbelief, trembling slightly. By now, Rex had recognized that look well. The face he had seen in the Noah he knew, when he came out to him. The face Noah put on when he was innately scared of Rex leaving him. It was the face Noah made, out of _love_.

In that moment of anguish, of suffering the lost and love of his friend, only then did Rex come upon the revelation that he was had been too stupid and blind to see before: _Noah had been in love with him, all these time_.

Rex finally understood the turmoil that plagued him before Time-Meta fucked with space-time. Rex had actually hidden away his agony over Noah – even from himself –and was like a race car driver speeding without a destination, going round in loops over and over, facing the same scenes that perturbed him. Noah with Nathan, or Noah with other guys – _Rex hated it_. Hated those who had the damn gall to usurp him and fuck Noah. Fucking hated it, the more he thought about it.

But just when Rex had realized that and realized that he too had innately loved his best friend, he had lost Noah's love.

"And, I didn't tell them the part where you had always tried to show me you loved me," Rex said softly, so soft that his words barely hung above a whisper, trembling, "But I was just too blind and stupid to see."

A hitch of breath showed Noah caught his soft words. Then a deep frown of anger and frustration pulled over scared eyes. With a sharp twirl, Noah raced down the corridor, running away. It struck Rex as a familiar gesture. Noah was afraid – had always been afraid to reveal his true feelings.

Well then, maybe Rex hasn't lost Noah's love after all. Carrying a tiny flicker of hope, Rex chased him and of course, bounded down faster than Noah could hope to get away. Then right in the middle of the corridor where the night patrol or anyone waking up to take a piss, could walk by at any minute, Rex grabbed Noah and pushed him back against the wall, crushing his lips against his.

He felt Noah scream his frustration, his anger and all his torrent of feelings into him. Rex swallowed them all, mouth agape to match Noah's breathy pants, not caring if the faint smell of cigarette made his nasal canal itch in discomfort. Noah bit his tongue hard, in retaliation, and pushed him off. But however strong and muscular Noah was, Rex was still the one with nanite strength, so he pushed back, imprisoning the blond against the wall with the full length of his body.

Noah pounded Rex's back instead, over and over, hard and relentless. But however hard Noah was struggling, the proof how much he wanted Rex, lay in his hardened crotch, evidently felt even through the thickness of their pants. Uncaring of where they were, and ignoring Noah's conflicting protests, Rex pushed his hand under the tight band of Noah's pants and cupped the bulge inside his underwear.

Noah jolted, arching off the wall, throwing his head back, gasping for air like a starving nymph. Finally, that sensual creature Rex had glimpsed only but a few times – at the club, or when drunk during Delta's little after-shave party – had emerged. Taking the chance, Rex stooped low to bite that exposed neck, becoming satisfied to feel Noah's breathing hitch.

It was as if Noah finally caved in, stripping down all his ice cold barriers as he stripped Rex of his tee, past all control of himself. He dug his nails in Rex's back as he pressed their chest together, so Rex can felt both their hearts hammering wildly against each other.

Rex himself didn't question what he was doing – didn't hesitate either, even if he vaguely thought at the back of his head, that he was flushed against a man, wanting him as hotly as he had ever wanted any woman. It didn't bother him -not one bit. And he had little uncertainties on what to do either – being a man himself, instinct came straight to his head, or rather, his actions were controlled by the throbbing flesh down south.

Rex knew what got _himself_ hard – no doubt that would be the same for Noah.

He bit all along Noah's neck like a hound marking his mate, and continued kneading Noah's cock over his briefs with one hand, while another hand slipped past the elastic band of Noah's underwear, going round the back to Noah's ass to cup a firm cheek.

A frustrated groan escaped Noah, who panted so hard now, brows furrowed in an oddly sexy manner, well portraying how turned on he was.

Noah had become pliant so suddenly, demanding for him so _physically_ , Rex almost felt like he was dreaming. But he didn't question it, preferring this side of Noah that threw away all restraints, who freed himself to the questing urges of his body.

Rex himself was panting wildly, blood charging hotly and madly over his whole body, taking a round trip then landing down south to his cock, making him impossibly harder every second. He was like a mad dog in heat, wanting nothing more than to sink his teeth into the hot flesh laid before him.

Rex didn't think, just unbuttoned Noah's pants and pulled them down his hips.

"Bedroom – " came Noah's constrained gasps, voicing aloud the last vestiges of coherent thought and rationale that he could hold on to, before both men sunk into their carnal desires.

Rex didn't know how they fumbled their way back to Noah's room, lip locking hungrily in slow twirls, stumbling every several steps and smashing one or the other up against the wall. Noah had bit Rex's tongue and lips mercilessly till they felt numb, and he was sure would bruise the next day. He didn't care, so long as he had Noah's welcoming embrace, as rough as it was.

Once in the room, all clothes were peeled off violently – seams were torn, buttons popped off – they didn't care to be gentle in their urgent rush to feel skin upon skin.

Fire licked them but it was not the passionate kind – it was rough hands and teeth all over all in between soundless expressions of desire, punctuated by heavy grunts and groans. There were no words. No validation of love from Noah, and no further confessions from Rex. Just raw, carnal behaviors with no sense but to vent the torrid of emotions running inside.

Like delirious hounds, they rocked their hips madly together, hands rough on each other's cock, until they climaxed together, screaming muffled cries into each other's neck.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Dawn came, sunrays peeking in through slits of the metal blinds, some spilling over his face, rousing him from his sleep.

Rex woke feeling like he was run through by a train, over and over. Well, technically, he was – he has to deal with the aftermath of last night's carnal episode. Recalling the crazy night, he shot straight up the bed, but found himself alone. He felt his jaws tighten. Well of course, he shouldn't expect Noah to be sleeping next to him like they've become happy fucking lovers.

He wasn't too sure what transpired the previous night, except that after a harsh wank, Noah bashed Rex's head with his knee. And while Rex groaned over in hurt, head pounding and cursing how that damn Noah knew exactly where to hit to hurt the most, Noah had coldly left the room. It left Rex exhausted and lost, curling cold on his side, breathing in the scent from Noah's bed sheet and pillows like a painful, intoxicating drug, till sleep claimed him.

Now awake, Rex hugged his knees to his chest, chin on his knee, angst-ridden laughter spilling over his kneecaps, cruelly tickled by the ludicrous way he and Noah had acted the night before. That punishing, bitter exchange of physical heat had zero intimacy in it, the callous act serving nothing except to disconnect the both of them further.

Tummy weak from the gut-wrenching pain that kept assaulting him lately, his sad laughter died soon enough. It was a lousy way to start the day, so he attempted to pull himself from the depression, reminding himself he need to keep himself pumped and ready for action at any time. Sure Noah was important, but so was living up to the expectations of the rest of the combat team.

He checked the time, thinking it might be late morning, and about time for him to check in with main control to see if anything was up. However, it was barely dawn, and he remembered that in this part of the country, dawn broke earlier. He sighed, annoyed that he barely had three hours of sleep. No wonder his lids were heavy. But he knew there was no way he could fall asleep again, with the incidents fresh from the wee hours of the morning, heavy on his mind.

Remembering that he heard Holiday mention there was a small basketball court erected here as well, Rex decided to shoot some hoops instead. Maybe the exercise will help to burn off his restlessness and help him cool off some steam.

Nearing the recreational wing, Rex could hear sounds of a ball bouncing and was a little surprised. It was damn early, but it looked like someone else was already there. The sounds of thumping and slamming in quick beats without rhythm, grew louder as Rex passed the gym. He was new to this part of the premises, but the sounds guided him well, beckoning him out the loft where it oversaw an indoor basketball court below. Rex froze a second when he caught that familiar blond head jogging up and down the court, dribbling a ball and shooting hoops.

Rex deliberated upon the terrible sight of the cause of his torment the first thing this morning. A million words swam into his head, about all the ways to say he was sorry, or how he could salvage last night's madness and reiterate his love for Noah. However, he decided against it, opting to just lean against the metal rails, watching Noah quietly.

After a few minutes of Noah missing _every_ shot, Rex was stunned he became so bad. He could tell Noah was increasingly frustrated, for he shuffled from feet to feet, ankles flexing, pointing heel to toe repeatedly, the way he did on court during games. It was rather depressing watching this, because the Noah Rex knew, could score a hoop in every throw.

Then Noah slammed the ball hard against the ground, cursing aloud in agitation, causing the ball to rebound off the floor up ten feet into the air. Noah whipped around to stalk away, shoulders marching left and right angrily. Rex shook his head. Noah never gave up that easily.

Rex flung out a whip, racing to catch the ball mid-air as it U-turned and dropped back down. Noah froze mid-way across the court, realizing the sound of the ball coming back, never came. He turned and slowly dragged his gaze upwards to Rex. Even from the distance, Rex could feel Noah's flashing glare, steely gaze punishing.

"You never suck this bad. How long have you not played?"

"Fuck off."

Rex knew the answer even if Noah wouldn't say. He probably couldn't play their goddamn favourite sport since Rex quit Providence.

"Are those the only words you know how to say? You're like a goddamn broken radio," Rex didn't mince his words, equally vexed and tired of being the punching bag. Noah didn't have the right to treat him this way.

"And you're like the goddamn ghost of a guy dead to me."

Incensed by Noah's harsh talk, Rex jumped over the rails and extended his legs downwards, letting it drop onto the dusty veneer flooring first, before the rest of his body followed.

"You'd drink the saliva of the guy you didn't care? Touch his cock and help him cum? And even cum together with him?" Rex shot back.

He hated this staunch side of Noah. Noah clearly wanted yesterday's tryst, begged for it even. But when that was over, his switch flipped back, and he was back to being Mr. Brash. So what gives? Rex just didn't get him.

"Seeing that lame-ass performance, it seems to me, that without me, you got no one to whip you into shape. Couldn't find someone suitable to play ball with, eh?"

"Excuse me?" Noah sounded offended, and he was supposed to, because Rex was deliberately pushing all his wrong buttons.

"I'm just saying, you've got no challenge. No one to push you forward. No one to get you excited."

Noah hurled the ball square into Rex's chest, who caught it by the palms of his hands.

"Let's play ball," Noah growled, tones low and feral, the outer corner of a brow twitching madly.

Rex didn't worry about antagonizing him – he meant to do that. He felt a cynical smile crawl into his face – getting an 'invitation' after riling Noah was almost exactly the same as what his _Noah_ would have done, which went to show there were some parts of him that was the same – Noah wouldn't pass up a contest to anything, especially when it came to doubting his skills.

Unfortunately, this Noah couldn't live up to the skills Rex had long been accustomed to facing. Rex beat him easily, swerving around and twisting whilst dribbling the ball pass Noah's reach.

To Noah's credit, he was quick on his feet, footballs landing light and bouncy like he had springs under his boots, always hovering close to Rex like a shadow. However, his arm movement needed more work, coordination of hand and feet lagging behind, too slow to snatch Rex's ball, and too clumsy to maneuver the ball to his court. Noah's terrible skills incited Rex to laugh openly in his face, pissing the blond off further.

"If you can't steal my ball, you're beyond polishing."

"Shut it Metal Mouth, I'm just a little rusty," Noah shot back, circling Rex agitatedly, shoulders hunched, arms swiping in left and right impatiently in an attempt to snatch the ball from Rex.

"Hah! You need more than simple oiling to get your clogs turning," Rex skillfully dribbled the ball out of Noah's reach, passing the ball from one hand to another from the back, doing half turns in response to Noah's incoming movements, "Grandpa plays better than you."

"Shit head. I'll thrash you."

"C'mon then, don't keep me waiting."

They rattled one another back forth, but surprisingly, Rex didn't feel bruised. Rather, he quite enjoyed it – not that he had become a masochist, but there was something rather comforting with their banters going back and forth, akin to how things used to be, or should be, minus the hostility.

Noah got serious – darn serious, actions sharper, more jerky from using force, sticking to Rex's every move, bumping and elbowing him without consideration. Sweat ran over them like a drizzle, soaking their tees and the bands of their pants, wetness making their body brush slide over one another as they jostled for the ball. Rex had one part of his mind, focused on triumphing Noah, dead set on not letting Noah get the upper hand. The other part, was fixated on their tempestuous ducks and dives, prowls and wild arm swings, and how their hot flesh were kissing brutally as if they were locked in a hysterical, animalistic dance ritual. They jostled so close to each other, Rex could feel Noah's hot exhalation down his neck, or over his shoulders, and feel the steam rise off Noah's own, like he was a fire dragon, breathing fire over his territory.

Rex didn't know why, he felt miles improved in mood even if he was still facing turbulent thoughts. Perhaps acting out the inner chaos in their dragon dance let him release his inner frustrations, which were cooped inside for the last couple of weeks.

Finally, Noah snatched the ball over and let out a deranged sort of cry. Rex couldn't help but give a half smirk. He was oddly happy to have the ball taken from him, even if his competitive side was aghast. Rex encircled Noah's shoulders with stretched out, lightly bent arms, hands swooping inwards with flexible wrists to try getting the ball from under him. Noah became fairly apt at interchanging control of the ball between his two hands, always bouncing the ball just inches out of Rex's swat. Rex took sharp strides in a circle around Noah, trying to block him head on, but Noah was right on pace with him, always keeping his back to Rex. They shuffled in rhythm, hips swinging fast, thighs bouncing, ankles and feet shuffling energetically like they were rumba partners.

Noah was like a driver who had not touched the wheel for decades – but it seemed after the short warm up and refresher course, he was getting the hang of it back. He became more daring and moved out of stationary defense, now racing forwards while dribbling and keeping the ball from Rex. Rex chased after, like hound exhilarated by a thrown stick. But in his excitement, he kicked off too strongly, so ended up flying forwards. He crashed heavily against Noah's back, knocking him face front onto the ground, causing the ball to slip from his grasp due to the sudden force.

Rex was equally shocked as Noah, having overestimated his leap, and grunted from the fall.

"Shit! Sorry, Noah!" Rex panted out, arms pushing his chest off from Noah.

"God damn it! You ass! You did that purpose!" Noah craned his neck backwards and eyed Rex accusingly.

Those parted, wet lips, from which breathy pants escaped in the most sexy of sounds, and Noah's face flushed and excited from the sport, painted the most inappropriate, alluring picture. Rex felt all the tendons along his inner thigh pull taut. He grabbed Noah's shoulder with one hand whilst balancing his weight with the other open palm, and rolled Noah over so that their hips were flushed against each other's.

Noah's breathing hitched sharply, eyes popping at the same time, just realizing and feeling the incredible hardness between Rex's groin. The exercise earlier already made Rex's blood rush all throughout his body, including his nether region. Especially since Noah's ass had been pushing back and rubbing against his sexual organ for the last half an hour. It was more than stimulating for Rex – it steadily sent him into overdrive and now, he couldn't fight his raging hard on any longer.

Noah must have read the hunger in his eyes, for a sudden anxiety seized his facial expressions, and his neck muscles pulled taut, jaw hardening. He shot a hand against Rex's front shoulder, eyes dark and stormy, yet looking undecided on how to respond. Rex felt no opposing force, instead, Noah's fingers curled just the tiniest bit around his tee fabric. So Rex took it as permission to continue their rendezvous from the night before.

As he leaned down, right before he was about to capture Noah's lips, he felt a wholly female voice call him.

 _"_ _Rex."_

It was loud, nearly echoing in the large court, and despite that single syllable of his name, Rex could hear all the shock and rage in it.

And he recognized that voice instantly, causing his blood to quickly turn cold, excitement in his manhood dying down like freezing ice water doused it. He pulled back from Noah sharply, who also jolted as if electrocuted from a nasty shock, and both scrambled to get to their feet.

Rex felt like a mechanical robot who couldn't feel his limbs as he turned fully around to face the owner of that call, who stood at the edge of the basketball court with a sleeping Riaena against her torso, with small arms hung loosely around her neck.

"Circe," he responded weakly, swallowing hard, temples at both sides of his head tightening painfully from a mix of dread and guilt.

 ** _To be continued…_**


	42. Complicated ties

**Chapter 42: Complicated ties**

(Rex is reminded of his obligations to his current family ties)

There was no need to ask what she was doing here in Providence. It was obvious she was here for him, since he hadn't been home – not even once, since he left searching for Providence.

Rex knew he had disappointed Circle, and had expected to face her wrath sooner or later. But still, finally facing her dark, stormy gaze lucid with tears, Rex felt himself becoming both weak and strung tight like a string about to snap.

Still cradling Riaena in her arms, she stalked towards them slowly, stiffly but menacingly, like a thundercloud dead set on unleashing her fury at him.

"How could you, Rex?" Circe's chin quivered against Riaena's untamed hair, "You just threw us at home and left without another word. Left and didn't come back home at all, for weeks. Just what were you thinking?"

Her arms around Riaena's bum and thighs were shaking as much as her voice, making Rex breathe shakily as well. Guilt rose up inside him like a rising tsunami, especially on seeing the angelic Riaena in her arms. How could he have abandoned that angel? Yet as much as he was happy to have her as his daughter, he felt it was wrong somehow, to acknowledge this bit of good fortune and conveniently claim her as his child, since Riaena wasn't exactly _his_ daughter, was she? Considering the fact that he had come from another timeline, he _never_ really had a child. It should be the 'Rex' of this timeline, since Caesar confirmed they were of two different, separate physical bodies. If so, then how could Rex count Riaena as his?

"And as if that's not bad enough abandoning your wife and kid," Circe continued, shaking her head, taking slow steps as if every step was trying and difficult for her, "When I finally come here at Riaena's pleading and crying, I see you, about to _kiss someone else_."

She threw Noah a spiteful glare, but he didn't flinch, either because he was hiding his true emotions, or he didn't really care – Rex wasn't sure. On the other hand, Rex felt like her words shot him like an arrow square on the target. He did feel bad, like he had betrayed her as her husband. He couldn't muster the courage to spill last night's tryst with Noah either. It would hurt her even more. And probably devastate her, to know that Rex didn't love her _nearly_ as much as he loved Noah.

He was woeful, and suddenly also detesting the commitment pushed onto him without him having any say or choice in the matter. He knew he should apologize, but he couldn't, knowing it was useless, since the damage had already been done. He was horrible, and he had no excuse for his actions. It was plain to him that he couldn't even regret his behavior even if he wanted to, because he was so dead set on returning the situation to what he was most familiar with, that he had kinda overlooked ' _his'_ wife and child. Because from where he came from, he _didn't_ have them – so his connection to them was somewhat disjointed. Not to say he wasn't happy, or that he didn't care. It was just his heart hasn't wrapped round the bond yet, roots not yet buried deep. It was one thing after all to suddenly wake up and find out he was married and had a kid. It was another, to feel that deeply, to find the love he should have for them, when his heart was still tripping over and yearning whole heartedly for Noah.

Looking at Circe, Rex couldn't say a thing in defense. He had no right to. And had nothing to say to make her feel better – he just didn't know what to do. He was in complete shambles himself, trying to heal from all the icy cuts Noah was driving into his heart with his cold mannerisms and seemingly uncaring attitude. How could a torn up man hope to heal someone else when he desperately needed healing himself?

Subconsciously, Rex took a sidelong glance at Noah, perhaps wishing for a few words of support, or a firm hand in his to lend his strength and allay all the turmoil thrashing inside. Rex desperately wished Noah would side with him, justifying that Rex was of his own separate person to be free from the ties created by the _other_ 'Rex'.

But Noah said absolutely nothing in the long, depressing moments that the three of them stayed on the court.

" _Say something_ , Rex! God damn it don't just stand there quietly like an idiot!" Circe yelled, coming up to his face, searching him madly.

Rex took a giant breath. He should apologize. Say something. Anything. Tell her how he can't be her man. Since in reality, she had dumped him almost two years ago.

But before he could say anything, he saw Riaena stirring, so he froze.

Her head perked up and she looked both sides, a little disoriented.

"Mommy? Where are we?" she called softly. Without waiting for Circe to reply, she craned her neck and twisted her small body around, inquisitively checking out this foreign place she was brought to.

Seeing Rex, she inhaled sharply, and tears immediately sprung to her eyes.

"D-Daddy? Dadddyyyy!" she screamed. Her longing and despair was immediate, arms stretched out towards him with legs kicking, desperate to get to him.

Rex felt tears well up in his eyes, and he wanted to kick himself for being such a jerk, for being a failure of a 'father', even if this _wasn't_ really his kid.

He caught her firmly around her small back and carried her against his chest, bouncing her up and down lightly and patting her head in an attempt to comfort her.

"It's okay, Riaena, I'm here," Rex cooed, feeling more guilty with every word, "I'm sorry, don't cry."

"Daddy! Why were you gone?" she cried aloud in between loud wheezes and sobs, her crying thoroughly wrecking him.

"Oh baby, I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry," his voice finally broke, thick with sadness and guilt.

Circe glared daggers at him.

"I'm surprised you look so concerned for her. You didn't think of her at all, did you? While you were here."

Rex's jaw tightened. Not that he didn't, but more like he wasn't sure how to face her, which was one reason why he delayed going back. He was also still struggling with getting the combat team bonded. And getting the hang of various new protocols. And undertaking many missions everyday –the incident rates were nearly double of what Rex was used to, so there wasn't nearly enough time or energy for him to make the long flight home.

If only he could relate all that to Circe eloquently to justify his actions enough, without sounding like he was making excuses. It just made him like a bigger asshole trying to explain, so his lips remained glued, opting instead to receive the berate that he deserved.

"You heartless beast!" she spat through gritted teeth at his silence, hands balled and shaking by her sides, giving Rex the sure impression that she would have greeted him with a punch if Riaena wasn't around, "You should have been back to see her. You should know it was hell without you around!"

"I'm sorry, there's too many things going on," Rex finally answered, voice weak, looking over Riaena's head into Circe's livid and pained gaze.

Circe made a giant huff then looked away, brushing her hair back agitatedly.

"Yea, there's _always_ something on with Providence to keep you here," Circe gave a woeful look, "but couldn't you at least bother to give a phone call?"

She sighed and shook her head.

"Anyway, since you can't leave, you'll have to deal with looking after Riaena here."

Rex jerked slightly, unable to believe what he just heard.

"What? You're leaving her here?"

"Yea," her eyes blazed whilst she replied, "Look, I have a big case recently, so I have to spend a lot of late nights at the office assisting the attorney team."

"But, don't we have a nanny to help?" Rex asked timidly.

Circe looked like she wanted to kill him.

"Yea, but we've busted our nanny budget! How many days do you think you've been away?" Circe hissed, jawline tight, looking like she was struggling to keep her voice down in order not to stress Riaena out.

"Plus, she's been too cranky and too much of a handful recently, for Mom and Aunt Jo to manage," she gave him a criticizing gaze that bothered on loathing, "You _should_ know that Riaena is closer to you, since you're the one who's with her more often."

"B-but, you're leaving her here while you go to work – so how is that any different? What if she misses you?"

Circe looked like she wanted to heave a sigh, but she held it back, shaking her head in a remorseful manner instead.

"It can't be helped. It'd be only temporarily though, at least until this weekend is over."

Rex was still in disbelief, particularly since he knew how much Circe wanted him to stay clear away from Providence. What made her lenient to let her daughter _stay here_?

"Are you sure? I thought you hated anything to do with this place," Rex voiced his concern.

Circe's lips pulled taut instantly, showing just how much Rex spoke the truth. But her pursed lips gave way to a defeated sigh.

"Yea, I don't like this – not one bit. If I had a choice, I wouldn't want to even step foot in this place. But Riaena, has been crying for you. She _needs_ her father."

Noah finally made a grunt, clearing his throat deliberately.

"I imagine so. But Providence is not a place for kids," Noah spoke in a tone more callous than he needed to, rolling the basketball to one side of his hips, "You'll have to take her back –"

"I've talked to Caesar," Circe interrupted in a tone so acid that Rex flinched on his behalf. He'd have to hand it to Noah for not even flexing a facial muscle at being interrupted so tersely. Normally, when Rex or anyone else did that, Noah's lips would curl downwards and he'd give a look like he wanted to wring whoever it was that cut in while he was talking.

Circe coolly crossed her arms, paying no mind to her fierce demeanor.

"He says since Holiday's kid is here too, he'll have no problems making arrangements for Riaena. He said he'll talk to the higher ups about this."

Noah finally frowned, showing how he hated the arrangement.

Then she stepped right up to him, squaring her shoulders.

"And listen, _Noah Nixon_ ," her tone and brows were lowered, like a lioness in warning, "If I come back and catch you laying another hand on _my fella_ again, I _won't_ go easy on you."

Rex thought Noah would give his cold, brash trademark 'whatever' or 'I don't give a fuck' reply. Instead, he bristled, gaze flashing and rattled tersely in a pissed off tone, " _Your fella?_ You believe _he's_ your fella?"

Noah ran an agitated hand through his wet, sweaty fringe.

"I believe Caesar has repeatedly explained to you that this 'Rex' comes from another dimension. So he ain't your man – " Noah spat, acid dripping much more than usual, and much to Rex's surprise, went on to say, "–so I can _fuck_ _him_ whenever I want and wherever I feel like it."

Riaena, young and susceptible to surrounding emotions, became more distressed at the waves of anger rolling off both Circe and Noah, and started wailing again. Rex panicked and became tongue tied. He should step in and prevent the both of them from having an all-out war. However, the dam threatening to burst in his arms, demanded his priority. Hence, he was forced to step away a few paces in a bid to comfort Riaena, rubbing circles around her back, getting her to quiet down.

Circe pursed her lips, glaring back wordlessly at Noah, arms shaking faintly. Rex was almost convinced she would have the definite guts to strike Noah –already she had balls enough to talk straight on with Noah, which was no easy feat. Thankfully, she chose to stand down. She spun on her heels, so fast that her ponytail whipped around behind her head like a lash, and she stalked out, low heels digging and echoing across the concrete floor long after her back disappeared around the bend in the corridor.

Riaena's sniffles and Rex's heavy breathing filled the immediate absence, lending an awkward and tensed atmosphere. Rex threw anxious glances at Noah, telling himself that he only said those words to antagonize her. But when Noah whirled around and rushed towards Rex for half a step, he wore the most crazed look in his eye that somehow, gave Rex the crazy impression that Noah was going to smash their mouths together and suck each other's life like they did the previous night.

But then those flashing cerulean eyes dropped to Riaena who was still in Rex's arms, and Noah stopped, lips curling downwards into a snarl. Without another word, he too left, leaving behind a fretting Rex whose heart hammered wildly, and whose mind was in chaos.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Riaena was an incredible kid.

Rex thought he'd have to fret about her weeping all day. But she calmed down fairly quickly after that heinous morning at the basketball court, and seemed miles unworried that Circe just short of pushed her into his responsibility. He got why Circe was mad at him, but he didn't understand what made her think it was the smart decision to exchange her into the care from one parent to another. Anxiousness crawled at him that Riaena would ask for her mommy's whereabouts and burst into Nigeria Falls if she thought Circe abandoned her. He thought kids would be sensitive like that.

However, when he looked her straight in the eyes and gingerly informed her 'Mommy would be away for a few days', Riaena put up a brave front. Her lower lips trembled slightly, evident that she was anxious about it, but her eyes were astonishingly bright and sharp, staunchly refusing to cry.

"I know that, Mommy told me many times. She said if I want to be with Daddy, I can't cry while she is gone, or I will cause trouble for you," Riaena informed in a well-put-together manner, surprising Rex at her level of maturity despite her tender age.

Rex sighed in relief at that.

One hurdle down, another to go – he was also worried the different environment would stress her out and make her feel uncomfortable. Hell, this Providence was roughly built and looked completely like a bunker camp, enough to even intimidate Rex the first time he walked into this place.

Yet Riaena was anything but stressed or upset. As he carried her through the corridors towards the Science lab to look for Caesar, she was completely absorbed with wonder, staring wide eyed with a curious gaze at her new surroundings at everything and everyone, head turning around on her neck from side to side so quickly that made Rex dizzy to look at her.

Entering Caesar's lab, he hoped his brother did have Riaena's accommodation arranged. He didn't see Caesar immediately – the lab was huge, with several smaller, connecting rooms. So Rex asked one of scientists where Caesar was and went to the direction he was pointed to.

As Rex passed by one of the rooms, the double doors slid opened when another scientist exited, and there, right in the center of view, Rex caught sight of Bobo dangling Gift upside down on her calves, with his arms stretched upwards, swinging her without caution.

Rex was pretty sure Bobo was just playing with Gift, albeit dangerously – but not like Rex hadn't done that himself with Riaena, so it didn't exactly cross his mind to think anything of it. However, Riaena, gave a giant scream that startled Rex. Before he knew it, she'd slid off his arms, sort of jumping down squarely and dashing into the room, disappearing behind the automatic doors when it shut.

"Riaena!" Rex gave a startled shout, slow to catch her.

He gave chase, entering after her and to his horror, Riaena was half-up on Bobo's back, banging fists on his shoulders, earning howls of protest and grunts of pain from the EVO ape. How did her short little legs even carried her so quickly across the room?

Gift was screaming as well, still upside down and jiggling precariously under Bobo's hands, staring in terror at the apparent assailant attacking her beloved nanny in a case of mistaken villainy.

"What is this – little devil! Stop it! Get off me!" Bobo hollered, doing half spins and shaking roughly in a futile attempt to shake her off.

Riaena gave a horrified gasps, arms frozen midair to take stock that the monkey just spoke. But within a fraction of a second, she decided that she wasn't afraid of him, continuing to hit him.

"You evil monkey! Bad monkey! Let her go! You evil, talking monkey!"

"Riaena stop! Just stop it! He's not hurting her!" Rex clarified urgently, reaching her and prying her off Bobo's back. In the back of his mind, he was in awe of her, since Riaena was a force to behold, struggling in his arms and kicking and punching air more forcefully that what Rex expected.

"Riaena, just calm down! He's not evil! Bobo's a friend! He looks after Gift and he's just playing with her!" Rex rattled on as he fought to keep her from jumping down to plummet Bobo further.

Riaena calmed down that instant, but gave Rex a suspicious, serious look.

"Really? He's not hurting her?"

"No he is not!" Gift huffed angrily.

Bobo could finally put her down, carefully and safely, helping to right her on the ground and once her feet touched the floor, she stepped up to Rex's side, glaring up angrily at Riaena.

Bobo immediately grunted in an annoyed manner at the pair, and retreated a way off sideways to support his weight against a table, rubbing his sore shoulders.

"You horrible, horrible girl!" Gift screamed, eyes full to the brim with tears, making Rex feel guilty.

"Oh god, Gift, I'm sorry, please forgive my daughter, Riaena, okay? She didn't know," Rex apologized sheepishly, head shaking, embarrassed and aghast at how rudely Riaena treated Bobo.

"Don't shout at me! I was only trying to help!" Riaena shouted back, eyes flashing, and struggled again to get down.

"No, no Riaena, be good," Rex warned, tone fierce, peeved at Riaena's sudden lack of good behavior, "I told you, the monkey is not evil." Then he added as an afterthought. "And it's bad to hit others without being a hundred percent sure of what is going on."

"Ugn," Riaena made a small, defeated sound like a whimper at the back of her throat, sounding sad and apologetic. "But I didn't mean it. I just thought, the monkey was… that she was in danger. I'm not horrible."

Sensing that her tantrum has died and her attitude was turning a one-eighty, Rex softened, especially since tears started to well up in her eyes.

Tears already ran over Gift's lower lids, trickling down her cheeks. Oh boy. That's one crying kid. There's no way he could handle it if Riaena cried as well.

"It's okay baby," Rex cooed quickly, tone gentle, "You're not horrible if you do the right thing and apologize for your misunderstanding."

"Really?" Riaena wrung her hand over Rex's shoulders, looking at him with a slight sniffle, tears barely holding back.

Rex nodded, then squatted so that her feet touched the floor.

"Now, go on, apologize." Rex gave Riaena a tiny nudge in Gift's direction in encouragement.

"Ugn…" Riaena started off softly, a little unsure, "I'm sorry I hurt your friend."

Gift pouted trembling lips and whirled around sharply, folding her arms across her chest, causing Riaena to flinch slightly, scalded that her apology was not accepted.

Riaena looked back at Rex with eyes that screamed for help. Rex grimaced.

"You should apologize to our other friend as well."

Riaena bit her lips and meekly stepped closer to Bobo.

"I-I'm sorry I hit you, monkey."

"My name, is Bobo," the EVO barked semi-roughly, causing her to jolt abit.

Rex felt a tiny pang of affront, but he cooled himself quickly, holding himself in check. Somehow, even though he was new at this, he got the gist that it would be unhealthy to jump to Riaena's protection over every tiny slight. She had to understand right that moment, that she was in the wrong, and needed to accept other's frostiness and overcome it.

"And he's not a monkey," Rex said instead, correcting her, "he's an EVO ape."

It earned him a tiny smile from Bobo.

Geez that damn EVO – Rex knew that Bobo was over exaggerating hunching over his back and grumbling about his pain. He just wanted to make things difficult for Rex in pay back. But Rex humored him – he had to be the better species anyway, right? – so he joined Riaena in apologizing.

Bobo's smile crept wider, then finally he waved a dismissive hand in the air.

"Oh alright, alright, you're pardoned," he said in a lackluster, gruff tone, but shot Riaena one last warning glance that twinkled with amusement, "So long as you promise not to try breaking my back again."

"My goodness!" Holiday's worried tone floated in from the door. She came rushing in at that point, with Caesar following closely behind in step.

"What is all that screaming about? Gift are you okay?" Holiday reached her daughter and took hold of her shoulders, turning her round left and right and looking her up and down, taking stock if there were any injuries.

"Oh no, nothing at all," Bobo said hurriedly, fanning the space in front of him with a grin too big and forceful, "Just two kids squealing with excitement that they have each other for playmates for a couple of days."

Rex chuckled to himself, catching onto Bobo's odd behavior.

"Yea, I'm sure it's better than playing with an Ape who hangs you upside down by the leg," Rex joked pointedly, sliding a 'right-back-at-ya' glance at Bobo.

Bobo caught that look of course, as was ritual between them whenever they pranked one another. He seethed and threw back a 'I'll-get-you-for-this' look, but it quickly turned into trepidation on facing Holiday's death glare.

"You what?" Holiday was aghast, voice shrill. Well, well, can't be good. Holiday gets cranky and will have fierce moments, but not like this. It was the first for Rex to catch this high-pitched tone of hers.

"I thought I told you to play it safe," she chastised, clearly unhappy.

Bobo looked completely trodden on, and caught between defending himself or expressing regret.

"Well, my bad, but this is what happens when the kid _hangs out_ too much with an ape. It makes her want to _hang_ all over the place," Bobo chose to be sarcastic, admitting his mistake but not quite apologizing to it. Classic.

Holiday looked heavenward and heaved a heavy sigh.

"I'm sorry Bobo, I know, I've been neglecting her quite a bit."

In a sudden twist, Holiday was now looking regretful, pinching between her brows.

Bobo grunted but before he could say anything else, Caesar stepped forward.

"Please spare her the sermon," he looked a little regretful, "I'm afraid it's also my fault. I've kept her busy with our work for a tad too long too."

"Caesar, it wasn't your fault. It was my choice to hang onto work. I've always been too engrossed with research," she refuted.

Caesar nodded his head solemnly.

"That you have, but since we have a special guest here," Caesar turned to specify Riaena, "You should take a few days off accompanying the two kids -" Caesar turned to Rex next – "the both of you."

 ** _End of chapter._**


	43. The kid you raised

**Chapter 43: The kid you raised**

(Rex does his best to look after Riaena and comes to some realization about his childhood)

Rex started off by bringing Riaena around to explore the place. Holiday and Gift didn't join in, citing that Holiday wanted to go through Gift's studies first. Rex almost wanted to protest that, saying she should give the kid a break, but Gift looked more than eager to run to do her science exercises – either that, or eager to avoid Riaena as long as he could. He didn't miss the scathing glances Gift kept throwing at his little black-haired vigilante. He had a feeling it would be tough getting the kids to play nice together.

Riaena – thankfully, didn't seem to notice, and another awful incident of that morning was quickly forgotten as they went round the place. Despite the bland interiors, Riaena still had eyes wide and twinkling, excited about the place, especially the people who filed by every couple of minutes.

Then came her questions. "What's that?", "What does that do?", "Who are they?"

She was definitely inquisitive, so Rex did his best to answer her as patiently as he could, but also carefully, with selective words. He suddenly realized how tricky it was to explain to a four year old what the weapons that officers carried were used for. He felt a little apprehensive at schooling such a young kid on the world of chaos, diabolical criminals and dangerous EVOs. It hadn't actually occurred to him until then, how convoluted it was for a kid to brush with the world that was all he had known.

Since his memories of his younger self with his family was scattered and disjointed, he considered himself brought up in Providence walls. It felt like his entire childhood was about receiving strict, Spartan style training to prepare for battle for a cause that was much greater than himself. It was the only childhood he knew, which was exceptional and unique, compared to the rest of the population in the country.

Hence, it gave Rex plenty of doubts if that was a healthy childhood for anyone. Looking at his daughter, Rex suddenly felt apprehension if it was even alright for her to be here. It was a military base – the eyes and ears of surveillance and the brains of command. Tough decisions and dangerous liaisons begin here. And being home base, it was also a big target for attack from any felon. Just because there was one kid already here, doesn't make it okay to add another.

Thinking along that line served to kick himself in the gut, for he was the very cause that led to this. If he should have second doubts now, he should take Riaena home right that instant, and bunk there for a couple of nights. However, he decided against it, for better or worse – Riaena was already there at present, plus, he sort of felt it would be a shame to waste the opportunity for the two girls to patch up. He hated the idea of Holiday's and his kid not getting along.

Before long, Rex amped up the Providence tour when he noticed Riaena looking a little bored – no doubt because every sienna corridor looked the same, as does the Providence uniform, and plus, he avoided taking her into 'fancy' places like the weapons room or the control room, so he could avoid having to explain the dangerous nature of his work and how messed up the world really is.

He does his best to continue entertaining her, that is, in the only sure-fire way he knew how – a Rex ride.

Her bubbly squeals and peals of laughter erupting from where she sat in front of his chest, gave a zest of life to the bleary, zombified halls, and made his heart run leaps and bounds with happiness. How easy it was to make her happy – and how easy it made him feel content and filled to the brim with warmth and fuzziness in turn.

Their wild play was unfortunately cut short by Holiday's crossed arms and equally crossed look as she planted her feet a shoulder's width apart, right in Rex's path. He pulled to an abrupt halt of course – hell would come if he dared zip pass her.

To defend himself, Rex cited how Providence was sorely lacking in 'kids facilities'.

"Which was why Caesar suggested that we have _playtime_ together. I've got games in Gift's room."

Holiday palmed her forehead and gave a 'what-will-I-do-with-you' sigh, the same one she's given since he was a kid. He should probably feel peeved that to Holiday, he's never really grown up in her eyes. Yet, the thought somehow tickled him, and really made him itch to agitate her the way he often did to exact her attention. However, he couldn't resort to whining and mewing in front of his kid, so he kept his 'adult' mode, and refrained from acting childish.

"Anyway, it's my bad, for making you wait for us. We've finished, so you two should come over."

Then she turned around, labcoat flopping behind her, whispering with a rustle for him to follow.

Riaena looked hugely disappointed of course, but Rex gave her a cheerful smile.

"C'mon kiddo, you hear that? Holiday's got fun stuff for us!"

A smile of anticipation spread across her face and she beamed upwards at him, then took his hand and dragged him forwards excitedly, till her other hand caught Holiday's coat.

Holiday threw back a warm smile.

"That's right, you'll have so much fun with Gift! I've gotten lots of amazing things for her and I know Gift will be more than happy to share."

Unfortunately, those were words that were said too early.

Gift has a less-than-impressive room – at least, not what Rex would expect Holiday to furbish for a seven year old girl. It was remarkably utilitarian – plain beds and cupboards with clean walls, all color coded to the greys and whites of a masonry warehouse. Somehow, he thought there would be more colors and cuteness going on, like stickers on the walls, wacky carpets on the floor, cute toys and plushies crowding the bed and pretty trinkets dangled around the ceiling – something like Riaena's own room.

Rex was hesitant to enter even, taking a double take before stepping in, thinking for a second that Holiday's got the rooms mixed up or wanted to pick up something here before bringing them to a more kid-centric room.

That thought was shot down when Holiday waved to a couple of lounge chairs on rollers, inviting them to make themselves comfortable, reinforcing that this was indeed, Gift's bedroom.

Gift was at her desk to the side, fiddling some in built controls on the table top, eyes glued to a screen. Rex saw her brows frown the tiniest bit through the slight reflection from the screen, but when she turned her neck to them, she was polite enough to grace them a small smile with a tilt of her head.

"Hey Gift, hope you don't mind us invading your space today… and for the next couple of days," Rex started off in what he hoped was friendly enough to melt the ice lacing the corners of her eyes.

Gift sure knew how to hold a grudge. Who knew seven year olds were such tough torches to chill?

Gift shook her head as she twirled in her chair to face them full on, palms resting on her knees.

"I don't mind," she shrugged nonchalantly, "Mom had prepared some games for her, if she doesn't mind playing it, then I'm cool."

"That sounds great," Rex retained his enthusiasm, rubbing his hands together, "So, what toys have you got?"

Holiday threw him a curiously cheeky glance before she dialed some buttons on a side counter, then a light projector beamed out, casting a giant screen that filled up the entire white wall about ten feet away.

Riaena and Rex both let out astonished whoas.

"Your favourite kind," Holiday announced rather amusedly, and then she handed them both hand controllers.

"You kiddin' me? This is some hardcore gaming infrastructure!" Rex exclaimed in a dazed, overwhelmed tone. Then his next words carried an undertone of distraught. "How come you never got this for me? I thought you're against such atrocities!"

Considering how often she rolled her eyes or chided Rex for spending too much time on his X-box.

Holiday gave a mock offended look.

"Hey, these are not mindless pow-wow games, alright? They're purely educational and helpful in developing a child's knowledge and intellect," she crossed her arms. "And F.Y.I, White Knight refused to give me the budget for it."

"Damn that old man!" Rex cursed under his breath.

Holiday sniggered discourteously as she took the main control to start off a game. Riaena was quite lost at what to do with the controls –as much as she could tell this wasn't a television remote, she didn't own such things yet and Rex was quite certain Circe had been a big part of that.

Rex and Holiday showed her what to do, teaching her about the game controller and how the moving, flashing pictures on the wall respond to it.

Riaena was completely delighted, oohing and aahing and giggling happily all the way, completely enamored with this 'magical' gadget.

Rex beamed watching her, completely enamored with how cute she was.

As soon as Riaena seemed to get the gist of it, Holiday started the game proper. They went through some pretty simple, nifty games of alphabets that were meant to help toddlers learn their language. These games were obviously not in Rex's fun list, but he had an entertaining time watching Riaena figure out the game.

However, some time passed before he noticed Gift didn't join in with them, or even sat with them to watch the game. She'd her back to them, withdrawn into the initial game that she was in.

Rex thought it didn't seem right. Gift should be the one playing, and since he didn't notice any more spare controllers, he decided to relinquish his and called her over.

Gift gave a half turn to regard him, a forced, awkward smile on her face.

"That's okay, you can keep at it. I've played that hundreds of times when I was little."

Holiday joined Rex in persuading, pausing the game and swiveling round on her roller chair.

"Oh Gift, c'mon, it's been a long time since then. Come have some fun with Riaena."

Gift dropped her smile into a rather disinterested look.

"Mom, I'm too old to play that," Gift objected, voice mellow, but with eyes pleading.

Somehow, Rex got the feeling it wasn't just that game that Gift was disinterested in. But seriously, how long was Gift going to stay mad at Riaena for hitting Bobo? Still, her loyalty to the EVO ape tugged at his heartstrings, since this showed just how much she loved and cared for Bobo. So Rex kept his patience, vouching to melt the icy wall Gift was putting between her and Riaena.

"Maybe so," Rex tried again jovially, "But so is Holiday, and me, but even we are having fun."

Rex couldn't believe it when Gift gave a half roll of her eyes.

Did that kid just threw shade at him?

"That's because you're accompanying a smaller human that easily makes adults like yourself, feel blissful, to humor yourself. It's a weird phenomenon."

Holiday could not look more aghast, jumping out her chair.

"Young lady! What a rude thing to say!"

Gift flinched a tiny bit, lips turning downwards in a sharp stretch, looking like she regretted her words.

"You will apologise at once!" Holiday commanded, planting one hand on her hips and a finger pointed menacingly at her daughter.

Gift grimaced, shoulders hunching in distress.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," Gift apologized, but more so to appease her mother than anything else.

"C'mon here, right this instant," Holiday crooked a finger, and it made endearing memories surface to his mind, seeing that Holiday had done that to him several times before when his naughtiness got out of hand.

It was poignant but also the strangest thing to see it play out on her daughter. Holiday was the perfect balance between soft and hard, the pillar that forced him to stand upright when he wanted to cave, and also the pillar that gave him the support to lean his head on for rest. She was like a big sister to him – but in retrospect, the reason why he couldn't think of her as his mother was because of her age – only a decade of difference. But really, seeing her now, it was obvious to him that Holiday had also 'mothered' him.

Sentimental reflections aside, Rex returned to the uneasy situation brewing at hand. Gift rolled her chair over reluctantly, head hung a little low. Rex didn't want to butt heads with Holiday on how she wanted to lecture her kid, but somehow, he felt the need to be soft against Holiday's current hard stance. Just like how Holiday was versus Six.

"Uh, you know Holiday, it's okay, Gift is overgrown for this game after all. And I can just accompany Riaena on my own."

Holiday gave him a stubborn look.

"It's not about the game. It's about putting others before you."

Rex could see Gift hunching further, burdened by those words, and suddenly had an epiphany that Gift's defeated response came so practiced, that he was sure a scenario like this was not the first. And Holiday's last words sounded more suited to come out from someone else's mouth – Six. Rex nearly even spilled it – 'you sound like Six' – but he stopped his word vomit in time.

Six had always been the more brusque, the more strict and stern of his two caretakers. Any softness or care Six had for Rex was so obscurely hidden behind his dark glasses and clipped, unsmiling lips and terse tone, that Rex spent his early years struggling and pining for approval. Only little acts caught by Rex after years of fixation at Six's side, told him how much Six cared, or how proud Six was of him.

Another quick sweep through the bedroom, and a wandering thought suddenly came to his mind. He wondered if in trying to compensate for Six's absence, Holiday acted like Six and channeled him through the upbringing of their daughter,

Despite his ponderings, Rex made no further contest to Holiday's orders. It wasn't like he knew what it took to be good parent anyway, so it wasn't his place to talk.

He just watched in pity as Gift took over the controls from Holiday's hand and wedged between them to continue the game unhappily. Holiday didn't seem to notice, or maybe she did but just opted to ignore Gift's pouting, as she remained seated with them, watching the game.

Before long though, the comm-link in Rex's ear beeped, and Caesar's voice came over.

"I'm sorry, Rex," came his brother's apologetic voice, "I know I was the one who suggested you lay off work and spend time with Riaena … but…"

"That's okay, go on, I'm all ears –what do you need me for?"

"I finally got connected to Meechum and you know how unsteady the connection is, what with the unpredictable snowstorms and such. Anyway, I think it's better for you to come down to the lab in person to speak with him. Maybe he can shed some light on your space-time leap and we can try to figure some things out."

"Snow storm? Is he in the Russian branch?" Rex guessed, "Has there been some issues with the satellite there?"

"Yea, he's stationed there, and yes, the branch was hit with a wave of attacks before you appeared, and repairs weren't complete."

Rex nodded.

"Alright, I'll be right down."

Rex ended the call and gave Riaena an apologetic pat on the head.

"Will you be alright playing here till Daddy gets back?" Rex asked Riaena tentatively.

Riaena nodded, giving him a reassuring bright-eyed look.

"Good," Rex nodded in relief, thanking the universe that separation anxiety didn't kick in that moment.

"I'm coming with you," Holiday informed, but he already knew as soon as she stood.

Rex felt a tiny bit worried about Gift's brooding mood, and wondered if Holiday should remain here to accompany her daughter. But he knew there was no persuading her otherwise. Meechum was quite the expert on Quantum space time and most things physics related. So if there was any hope of anyone shedding light on Rex's situation, they'll have to be down. Rex hoped at least that it doesn't take too long.

"Listen Gift, stay here and watch over Riaena, okay? If she needs to use the bathroom, show her the way, or call Bobo, got it?"

Gift nodded obediently, "I will," then asked in a hesitant, timid tone, "But can I play my own game?"

Holiday huffed a tiny bit.

"So long as you play nice," she warned, but didn't impose that she had to remain stuck with Riaena's game.

Gift's face lit up a bit on that, giving Rex some relief and peace of mind before he and Holiday left the room, striding in pace to the lab.

Holiday let out a tired sigh no ten strides down the corridor.

"Have you ever felt like you're a failed parent?"

 _Is she kidding him?_ Asking the guy who left his kid at home with the nanny and ran off to Providence playing the Hero to the rest of the world except his own daughter – yea, he _knew loads_ what being a parent was all about. However, he sensed his sarcasm and own self-berating would be ill-timed, considering that Holiday was expressing her own demons, so he chose his words carefully.

"C'mon Holiday, what brought this up?"

Another vexed sigh.

"I'm sorry," she cast him a sideways glance, "Gift's got too much a smart mouth some times. It's all my fault –I really have been neglecting her too much. She just… picks things up from other people."

Rex gave a rueful smile.

"Hey, I consider it as a strong point since she could talk Bobo down."

Holiday laughed abit over his small attempt at a joke.

"Yea, that is what happens, I guess, since she's always in a room full of adults. Sometimes though, I wonder if it would be better for her to grow up far away from here, in a nice neighborhood, going to school with other kids…" she trailed off, thoughts going far away privately in that direction, but she returned quickly. "Honestly, Rex, I don't blame you – not _you_ per say, but well, you know, the 'Rex' that I knew. I mean, I can understand why _he_ chose to make a life for himself away from Providence. Caesar secretly kept in touch with him, and let me tell you, I'm envious – you-him have a happy family life."

Holiday had stopped in her tracks, looking forlorn and wishful, causing Rex's heart seams to tug. Before he could righteously tell her that yes, she could have that life if she wanted, that it was her call to make, she continued with a tremble in her tone.

"But I couldn't, you know? And I mean, not because of some strong sense of justice that binds me here. Certainly, there's that, but if I'm truly honest, then I have to admit, I'm also _terrified_ of walking away from here."

Her words stunned him abit, so much so that he turned full on to face her, head dipping sideways, eyes large but soft. Sensing his question, she went on.

"I've been here for so long, Rex, _too_ long –that I can't say for sure that I know what having a 'normal' life means. I mean, I've spent so many years working and living here, I don't know any other way. And to top it off… this is where Six lived and breathed. I just feel –" her hands crawled up to both arms in a self-hug, clutching wretchedly – "like I'd lose connection to him if I left. Even though it's been nine years, I just can't move on. I'm not that strong – "

Rex couldn't bear hearing another wretched word.

He took her by her arms, larger hands eclipsing hers over her biceps and squeezed gently.

"Holiday, stop – you are the strongest woman –if not person – that I've ever known," his words were firm, but came out almost like a growl because of his firm conviction.

Rex bore his gaze into her, intently, catching hold of her chocolate pupils and keeping it from shaking.

"And what does it matter where you raise your kid?" Rex towered a least half a head over, so she had face upwards at a sharp angle and he'd inched so closely, he could feel her breath exhaling shakily into his nose, chest trembling evidently, wrought with emotions.

"Holiday, look at me, do you consider _me_ , your failure?" his words dropped lower into just above a whisper.

Holiday bit her lower lips that stretched taut, then shook her head slowly.

"Then don't you ever doubt yourself again, about whether you're raising your kid 'right'. Because _you_ were the one who raised me."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

End of chapter…..


	44. Second Chances?

**Chapter 44: Second Chances?**

(Rex carries hope amongst complex thoughts and feelings, emotions warring within)

* * *

Rex felt no burdens lessened even after he shared the happenings with Meechum. He felt apprehension gnawing at him as he recounted his battle with Time-Meta before he was warped here, and recalled the other's words to him when they crossed paths in _this_ dimension, a few weeks back. The Time-Meta EVO claimed Rex was the culprit who threw them into this space-time, albeit out of accident, since he had no clue how he did it. Then again, he didn't know if what Xanubian said rang true, or if he was trying to piss him off and egg him on.

Needless to say, Rex kept that little conversation they had, to himself – hell would rain down on him if the Panel found out about it and he had no interest in garnering more trouble from those old farts. Still, he knew keeping it to himself wasn't going to help matters.

After internally warring about it, Rex finally divulged to the Science team what he didn't tell the Panel – that _he, himself_ , might be the one who caused the time warp.

To their credit, only a few brows flew to the tops of their heads, most twitched, and a handful didn't look to have any reaction. Caesar, being one of them.

"You don't look too surprised," Rex pointed out blandly, "Don't tell me, you already guessed it?"

"Kid, we earned our places within the Science community, alright?" Meechum huffed in an annoyed fashion at the slight before Caesar could reply, eyes doing a big roll.

"It is _one_ of possibilities we considered," Caesar waved a hand as he went on with how they came by their deductions, "Xanubian's only had a fraction of the powers bestowed by the Meta-Nanite of Time. From your recounts of his past abilities, we can deduce he was never able to push through the time barrier so drastically. So the only way he could do it, was if he had some kind of device that could give him a massive power upgrade, like what *Van Kleiss did to Breach."

Rex nodded. "Yea, Modifier had given him a tech boost, he said so himself in the middle of our fight."

"Indeed," Meechum snorted after, "And having that much power boost only made it harder for him to control it. Add in a reckless Rex, and down the rabbit hole you two go."

Rex's mouth gaped open, not taking kindly to Meechum's words. Meechum had always been crabby, but the Meechum of this timeline seemed twice the bitch just like how everyone else here was.

"You know, that accusation is _so_ justified," Rex shot back sarcastically, folding his arms crossly.

Meechum's brow jumped in challenging fashion.

"Of course it is, unless you are _so sure_ you're a hundred percent in _effective_ control of the Master Nanites and didn't 'accidently'" – he made double 'apostrophe' marks with both index's and middle fingers in emphasis of the word – "made it go out of wack."

Rex tightened his fingers round his arms, nails digging into his elbows. He was offended with Meechum's clear insinuation over his lack of control, yet his words bore truth, so Rex begrudging kept mum.

He worried his lower lips instead, feeling ire over himself for being the unwitting cause. As much as he hated to admit it, it made reasonable sense. He thought back on their battle, and realized it came to a point where Rex could break through Xanubian's time barrier, or at least, match him, for a short moment.

He also recalled seeing glimpses of *Noah back on Abysus ground, and realized that he had unknowingly managed to turn back the clock by a few precious seconds, such that Noah wasn't taken by Xanubian. In the heat of that battle, instinct must have guided him to connect with the small fraction of Time-Meta Nanite inside of Xanubian. But since Rex has abysmal control over it, he wasn't able to completely seize proper control, resulting in warring control that let the Meta-Nanite spin out of control and warp the timeline.

Busy kicking himself in his own thoughts, he didn't notice Caesar has come up next to him, until he felt a warm hand on his shoulder, prompting him to look sideways into his brother's comforting eyes. Most times, those dark pupils twinkled only in regards to scientific matters, and looked blank and hazy when it came to others, giving many the impression that Caesar was a special breed of airhead.

And well, they are not wrong for thinking that. But on few occasions, his brother could prove himself to be acutely attuned to one's inner turmoil, as he did now, squeezing Rex's shoulder lightly with a soft light in his eyes, telling him not to beat himself over it.

Granted, Caesar didn't say that out loud – and Rex was surprised himself that he could tell, given Caesar's almost imperceptible expressions made him a master thespian. At that moment though, Rex could read the telling sentiments behind Caesar's body language.

Instead, Caesar quickly returned his gaze to the rest, and went on talking. He seemed to carefully avoid directly picking up from Meechum's allegation, skipping ahead to lay out possible solutions on how Rex might return.

Rex listened intently, but couldn't keep mum for long.

"That's impossible. I mean, I know I influenced Xanubian's Time-Meta-Nanite, but I can't even activate the fraction that sleeps inside me. I mean, if I could, I wouldn't be stuck here now, would I?"

"Maybe not consciously," Holiday spoke slowly, bracing one cheek on a palm that had the elbow propped by another folded arm, "But you must have, since you activated it on the mission against the Xanubian's army of Time-bots."

Rex knew he did, but he replied unconfidently.

"Well, I'm not so sure moving at super high speeds counted towards expending the powers of Time-Meta-Nanite."

"Oh listen, you underwhelming Nanite-Master," Meechum barked tersely, "It's just like riding a bike. Once you learn it, you'll never forget it, and you'll only get better each time you try."

"I don't think it's as simple as that," Rex refuted dryly, "Should I point out how I locked the gates and kinda threw away the key?"

Well, he didn't need to remind them. Since everyone at present shared the same history as his own where the Worldwide cure happened, all of them should also have known how he sort of *permanently deactivated the Master Control Nanites inside of him.

"Uh, yea, thanks for reminding us of your incredibly, _ingenious_ stupidity," Meechum coughed like he could spit his entire rectum out his mouth.

Rex winched even though he expected it – back when he informed the others of what he had done, he caused quite a heated rift amongst Providence. Half of the folks applauded what he did, agreeing with him that too much power was dangerous.

The other half, including Meechum, was in dismay, lamenting how they've lost the greatest power of protection and order. Not that a bloody war of words occurred, but certainly, there were many heated debates over that issue that went on for as long as after six months of that incident.

It was a difficult question that had no single consensus, and even Rex had to agree the opposing opinion had justifiable reasoning. No matter – Rex stood by his decision and his opinion does not sway even after six years.

"Meechum," Caesar – bless his soul –gave a soft half-growl, tones low and warning, stepping in with a brotherly show of support.

The other scientist pointedly ignored him, continuing on. "May I remind you, it's a two way thing!" he threw galvanized arms outward, stretching too far out the camera recording width, hands cut out from the video screen.

"You tapped into the Meta-Nanite of Time that belonged to Xanubian. Which means you could do it again."

Some tiny sounds escaped a handful of folks over the revelation; like that thought had not crossed their minds before. Caesar was one of those, brows flying upwards in ponder.

"No," Rex was quick to crush that opening before their hopes got up, "Xanubian is too weak, he's almost spent –" Rex had simultaneously come upon that realization – "I mean, I fought him, and while he's still strong, I can feel he's not quite on par on his time-manipulating finesse, at least, not as powerful as our last battle before the time warp. I think he's been here for too long, or I must have utilized most of his power in our space-time jump. Somehow or other, his power is waning away."

Many brows turned opposite direction now, downturned in doubt.

"Which I know, sounds odd to you guys, since he's been coming with these crazy, time-manipulating army that keeps coming back stronger than before – "

"Yea, and –" Someone at the back started to oppose him, however Rex rambled on, refusing to give any room to speak until he got his thoughts out.

"Sorry, before you guys start contesting," Rex held open palms faced away from himself in defense, "Let me put my ideas out: I'm thinking, what if the level of time-manipulation ability his robots have, were replicated from whatever's left of Xanubian's power? Since he has Modifier working together with him, that tech-master could copy that power, and implement it onto their robotic army, and gradually improve the tech each time."

Murmurs rose amongst the scientist, debating amongst themselves at Rex's bold suggestion – no surprise there – Rex was never the guy with the brains, only the guy with the fist, be it back in his timeline or this.

Even Caesar cleared his throat loudly, but when he next spoke, it wasn't to dismiss Rex's theories like he thought he would.

"I know each of you have reservations on this, but let me put it to rest –Rex is absolutely right."

Rex snapped to his brother and quirked a smile. It wasn't everyday a genius agreed to his theories.

"Without a doubt, Xanubian would do far worse, if he was up on the same level as the last battle he had with you. But it appears not, even with Modifier by his side. So it is safe to confirm that the space-time jump must have drained most of his powers, to the point where it was fruitless to upgrade him. So I should say, it will not be as simple for Rex to reconnect with Xanubian the same way he got here."

The team nodded their heads as they listened and digested Caesar's words, making a world of difference with how they took to his hypothesis. Rex didn't mind so much though, rather, thought it was cool how Caesar had so much of their respect and trust.

"Maybe so, but I find it hard to believe the Optimist is blowing Rex's one way ticket home to hell."

Meechum stared at Caesar with a crossed look in his eye, and from his tone, it was obvious he was reprimanding him.

"Xanubian's remnant power may be small, but we're not some third rate technologist like Modifier. I'll be damned Caesar, if you're telling me that we of the Original Nanite Project, can't isolate the power multiplication problem that Modifier failed to tackle."

A sudden twinkle came to Caesar's eyes, light dawning in those dark depths that masked a brilliance of intellect. Caesar cast Rex a glance, then back to Meechum, sharing a long, meaningful stare of episodes of eureka despite no other word said.

Looking from one to the other, Rex felt an anxious question spill forth.

"Wait, does this mean you have a way to send me home?"

Caesar jerked out of his odd and curious silent speak with meechum.

He looked at Holiday first, another planetary sized discussion floating between them like sci-fi mind speak. Then he finally looked at Rex, but with a slightly far-off gaze in his eyes.

"Well," he cleared his throat abit, "If we can somehow power that core… of Xanubian's essence…."

Caesar trailed off and abruptly moved away, quickly crossing the lab and hitting the keyboard to draw up some plans on the holographic screen in front of the desk. He never stopped talking, but his tone has softened, as if mumbling to himself, forgetting about Rex in the rush of his Eureka moment.

Holiday and the rest followed suit like worker bees to a Queen, whilst Meechum finally cracked a half smile – a smug one, and threw out a cursory "I'll be working on something from my end. Update you when I have results," before cutting the video-comm.

Rex was curious to know what these brainiacs had come up with, so he went up behind them, silently watching them work.

Holiday and Caesar were engaged in animated chatter, as the rest of their team members gathered around them with info-boards on hand, adding in their comments here and there. Holiday's fingers danced on her keyboards while Caesar picked up a gadget that connected to the screen interface, swiping the holographic data furiously as they exchanged ideas. The two lead scientists especially, seemed to agree on every detail each was putting forth, and even spoke at the same time out of their urgency and excitement, ending up saying the same words.

Despite the seriousness of the matter, Rex couldn't stop a laugh from escaping.

"The way you two work, well, I'm just glad Holiday has two such amazing assistants," he paused at the moment, suddenly realizing, he hadn't seen Amelia around, not since he woke up in the lab. "Speaking of which, where's Doctor Rhodes?"

The science department fell quiet instantly.

Caesar dropped the palm sized gadget, causing his holographic stat screen to blitz out. Rex thought he saw a strange wave of emotion passed over Caesar's face as he bent down to pick up his instrument. But when Caesar straightened, he looked back to business.

"She's not around," their team member answered, tone oddly reserved, alerting Rex that something was amiss. But he couldn't press on, as the team crowded tighter in themselves, locked in intense discussion that gave him no space to enter.

Looking at them, Rex knew his presence here was as good as a ghost. Once engrossed and possessed with something, they'll need a siren to ring before these lab-coat wearing figures would tear away from their work.

So Rex left them to it, putting aside the question about Amelia for now, and left the lab anxiously, while feeling hopeful at the same time.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

By the time Rex went back to Gift's room, about three hours had passed and it was close to dinnertime. Much to his surprise, Gift and Riaena were a riot of excited, bubbly squeals as their fingers worried the controllers in rapid urgency, so absorbed in the game that they were bouncing up and down and swinging their arched elbows left and right and all over the place.

A smile spread on his face, watching them, delighted that the girls made peace in the short hours they were left alone. After quietly watching them for long enough, he clapped his hands lightly to call for their attention, and suggested that they grab some dinner before returning to their game.

"Hurray!" Riaena was the first to abandon the controller, jumping out the chair with hands reaching for the sky. "Mac and cheese! I want mac and cheese!"

Rex laughed as he crossed the room to pick up her small hand.

"Uh, I'm not sure if they have that on the menu."

Riaena immediately gave a look of disappointment, mellowing.

"Really, they don't?"

Gift wrinkled her nose slightly as she turned off the gaming equipment.

"You like cheese? But the smell is less than favorable."

Riaena turned to her. "No, it smells good, and tastes good!"

Gift turned her nose up in the air, crooking a brow, arms crossing, making Rex wary of her slight dissent.

"Hmm, you're just like Bobo," she shook her head and sighed, "Anyway, Thursdays are without cheese, but if you like, I can ask Bobo to make you something."

Riaena lit up like Christmas tree.

"Really, you will do that? He can make mac and cheese?"

Riaena gave a half grin. "Of course."

Rex found himself exhaling deeply with relief, then his lips twitched upwards into an amused smile.

"Thanks Gift, it's really nice of you to do that for Riaena," Rex thanked her, then shot her a curious gaze, "And is equally amazing how you can get Bobo to listen to you."

As far as Rex knew, Bobo was indeed a great cook, but he was lazy, preferring to eat instead, so was never so magnanimous as to whip a dish for anyone. The only times Rex got lucky was when Bobo was craving for a specific dish, and made a bit of extra to set aside for him. Gift surely must wield some kind of tremendous power over Bobo if she could get him to cook on her order. Rex couldn't help but chuckle to himself, wanting to see for himself.

Gift beamed widely.

"Because Bobo is a big softie," Gift exclaimed, looking very pleased with it.

As the evening wore on, Rex began to notice little quirks about Gift that was rather peculiar. If he thought Riaena was bossy playing with other kids, Gift was twice as bossy, or officious. She was guiding Riaena where to sit, what to drink, and how to hold her fork and spoon properly. She also gave Riaena an informative guide on the canteen's layout, who were the kitchen staff on duty whom they should avoid and who were generous with giving extra helpings. She also gave tips on where to swipe the desserts before they're all gone.

While it's all very helpful, Gift looked rather exulted with Riaena thanking her, all smiles, and beaming and nodding her head along Gift's every word.

Rex observed her all through even after dinner ended, heading back to Gift's room where the girls resumed their game. Riaena was like an adorable chick following a mother duck, following Gift like a younger kid would to an older one. It shouldn't come off as totally surprisingly or out of the ordinary for Gift to take the lead and for a younger kid like Riaena to follow. However, Rex had the distinct impression that Gift was especially ecstatic to have someone following her every word.

Finally, sleeping hour came, and Rex had to coax the yawning Riaena to bed. Despite her protests and mild struggles, as soon as he picked her up into his arms, Riaena was already half-asleep and nodding off. Rex chuckled, glad that Riaena was having so much fun that she was fighting sleep.

Before he left the room, he turned to thank Gift properly for looking out for Riaena.

"That's okay, it's my responsibility."

She said it with a stretched smile and puffed out cheeks, with eyebrows hopping upwards and shoulders shrugged like it was a well-practiced, patronizing line.

For a kid who could easily have scientific discourse with Holiday's team one moment, then giggle into childish fits and chatter like a normal juvenile the next, Rex felt the inclination to read more into her lines. Especially since Gift was a kid who had never played with a kid her own age – this was a child who just like him, hung out with adults and an EVO ape.

Giving a direct, knowing look, he stared at her straight in the eye.

"I don't need you to answer me like you do to Holiday, you know?"

He crooked a brow, smiled tugging at his lips in what he hoped was encouragement. "I thought you didn't warm up to Riaena at first."

Gift smiled, but with the way her lips curled lopsidedly with a slight tilt of her head, Rex thought he saw a much older child than all her seven years, standing before him, shrewd, and uncommonly mature.

"Honestly, if she was a brat, I would have continued to dislike her."

Rex's eyebrows jumped at her bold confession.

However, she went on, gaze warming, "But it was… surprisingly fun."

"Because she paid attention to you? And follows you?"

Gift shrugged a little.

"I guess. She's sweet as an angel –" hearing that prompted Rex to smile – "And she listens to me. Doesn't expect anything from me."

Rex nodded in understanding, identifying with her, odd as it looked being one was a kid and he, an adult. But as they grew up in the same world, Rex wholly and completely understood her view point, even if she did not implicitly explain further.

It was same for him –every adult, every Providence officer, had expectations of him, and aligned themselves as his discipliner, and on most times, taking on the position as knowing more than he does.

Nobody doubted his abilities as the Nanite Generator EVO, yet, proving himself ready and worthy, was an uphill struggle. He could readily imagine it being especially complex for Gift as she is still a young genius – the grownups might have taught her and praised her intellect, expecting her to be a certain way, but they might not be listening enough in return.

"I mean, she's just a kid," Gift added, making Rex snort lightly.

"Hey, look who's talking," Rex balanced the fallen-asleep Riaena on one arm while he lightly brushed Gift's fringe back. "Listen, Gift, you might want to quickly grow up soon, but you've still got many years ahead of you. So take it easy, and enjoy your years as a kid while you still can."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

It turned out Riaena's sleeping arrangements were just in Rex's room. As Caesar informed earlier, they've put a cot beside his bed, wedged against the wall.

Rex carefully laid her into it, and watched her angelic smile awhile, smiling dazedly to himself a long while before he retreated to sleep…

…he hears voices, a giggle – _Riaena?_ He woke up startled, hairs raising at the back of his neck. Turning sideways, he jumped out his bed instantly, seeing that the small lump in the cot was missing, and the bars were down.

 _Riaena! Where did she go?_

Panic rushed high like a tsunami overtaking him, threatening to spill out his lips in a frantic scream even if his acute hearing already picked up her bubbly voice from elsewhere outside the room, which signaled she was safe.

Still, fatherly instincts kicked in, making him worried. _Yea right_ , if he had any enough fatherly instincts, he should have sensed it the first moment she disappeared from the cot.

Rex swore under his breath, but his words abruptly died in his throat when he exited the room and found Noah down the hallway, slowly walking towards him, looking down and smiling softly at Riaena in his arms, telling her cute jokes.

Rex was surprised, seeing Noah so gentle with _his_ daughter. When Noah glanced up and saw him, his smiled melted away and he cleared his throat awkwardly. He quickened his pace, then stretched Riaena out to pass her to Rex.

Riaena however, clung onto Noah for dear life like an octopus.

"No, stay with me, I want to hear more!"

Noah and Rex looked at each other, then Rex stood aside to let Noah into their room, feeling heat stroking his side as Noah walked past. Noah gently deposited Riaena into her cot, and gave Rex an accusing stare as he pulled up the cot gates. Before he could reprimand Rex for forgetting to lock the cot, Riaena knelt and reached over to the side to lock the gate herself.

Brows could have flown off both their faces.

"Wow, smart kid," Noah breathed a compliment. Rex felt his chest puff up with pride, "Now, if only your daddy can match half your brightness."

Rex clicked his tongue and shot Noah's smug mug an annoyed look, but it quickly softened into a warm, friendly one.

Noah cleared his throat again, seemingly unnerved, and turned his attention back to Riaena, who stood on her cot and leaned onto the gates, staring at rapt attention to Noah.

 _My, my,_ she almost looked at Noah with stars in her eyes. Rex shoved down the laughter bubbling inside his chest so he could watch Noah entertain Riaena.

Rex relaxed himself, leaning his sides against the wall next to the cot and crossing his arms, enjoying listening to Noah's troves of simple, but fun riddles and jokes to tell. No wonder Riaena was so hooked. And Noah had the softest gaze in his eye, unlike anything Rex had ever seen, and spoke in the most gentlest, yet liveliest tones, which ran over Rex like warm honey down his throat.

Noah was so tender, it made Rex's heart dance furtively alongside a sweet ache how he was not the lucky one to receive Noah's earnest affection. It was insane and immature to be jealous of his own daughter.

It wasn't long though, before Riaena started yawning again, eyes drooping despite her genial smiles.

"Alright Riaena, time for bed," Rex stepped in, and gently pressed her shoulders downwards, coaxing her to sleep.

Riaena rubbed tired eyes and didn't protest much. Rex smiled at her cuteness, and also at the fact that he'd his side pressed next to Noah, who didn't flinch or move away like Rex was a disease.

Once he was sure Riaena was well and truly asleep, Rex sighed contentedly then glanced sideways at Noah, who he found had a deep gaze locked onto him. Rex felt his breath hitch in his throat. Noah said nothing else before sidestepping and exiting Rex's room, but Rex followed behind, beckoned by Noah's penetrating gaze that wouldn't free him.

They continued a down the corridor, with Rex keeping a cautious few paces behind Noah's long, dawdling pace. Rex swallowed hard to keep his anxiety down. He wasn't sure what he was doing, or what Noah wanted from him, and confused why Noah was even allowing him to follow after instead of barking at him to fuck off like he normally would.

Unnerved by the awkward chase Rex was giving, Rex took a deep breath before speaking up.

"So, I assume you found Riaena wandering outside, looking for the toilet."

Rex guessed that much since Gift's room was on the same floor. Gift must have showed her the way, prompting Riaena to try to find her way on her own. He made a mental note to tell Riaena to get him to take her next time, least he wakes up in a panic again.

"Yea, and she said she didn't want to disturb Daddy from her sleep," Noah answered.

A small laugh escaped him. "She's an angel."

"And you're a horrible dad. How could you sleep through her getting off her cot?"

Rex felt mildly chastised, but he defended himself. "Well, can't blame me. She's like a little agent in the making – silent, stealthy, completely takes after me."

Noah stopped in his tracks and snorted, throwing back an incredulous look.

"You don't know the word 'stealthy.'"

Rex didn't mind Noah's snub. He just halted in his steps and grinned wider, which annoyed Noah even more.

"You're not supposed to find this funny. Where did your nanite alerts go?"

"It kicked in a minute too late," Rex admitted, rubbing the back of his neck as his smile turned sheepish, "But thankfully, you were there to accompany her."

"Thankfully, I woke up and wandered outside _at the same time_." Noah gave a hiss.

"Yea, and… surprisingly, you're so gentle with her. I thought you hated my kid."

Noah rolled his eyes.

"I hate you. Your kid has nothing to do with it."

"Then how about Circe?"

"Are you trying to piss me off more, Rex?"

Rex smiled foolishly. He couldn't help it. That one line was exactly what _'his'_ Noah would have said. This Noah just doesn't know it. Despite his frown, and his brusque words, his tone lacked the menace it used to carry, speaking volumes how Noah felt underneath his gruff front. Surely, this meant Noah was getting over the hurt Rex had caused. Surely this means things were mending between them.

Noah's frown deepened.

"Stop your creepy smile."

Then the blonde whipped around, prompting Rex to quickly close their distance in three steps and grab hold of his wrist, catching him before he could flee.

"Wait, Noah, please, can we talk properly?"

Noah stiffened, refusing to turn around to face him. A tensed silence passed momentarily before he gave a rejecting answer.

"It's late, I'm going to bed."

"Then can we talk in bed?"

Noah threw back eyes with shooting beams, sending a mouthful of saliva to rise up to Rex's jaw. Rex knew how that sounded like, so he quickly added in a rush to clarify.

"Sorry, I didn't mean for my words to come out _that_ way. I just, well…"

Rex lost his words, insides starting to shake. Damn it. Why was he always losing his eloquence at moments like this?

Rex suddenly gave a laugh of mirth, to which Noah's death glare slid into a puzzled look.

"You know, it's much easier to be kids. They started off on the wrong foot but before the end of the day – just look at the two girls – they've become fast friends."

Noah just breathed, likely not understanding what Rex was trying to get at, since Noah had un-mysteriously disappeared for the rest of the day since leaving the basketball court.

Rex took a deep breath.

"I mean, Gift and Riaena might become best friends –" Rex dared to continue – "Just like us."

"How _we used to be_ , you mean," Noah's refuting growl came so fast like a reflex.

Rex shot him a pained look, chin tipped upwards a fraction.

"Yea, but _what happened_ to us, Noah? Is there no way back for us?" Rex tightened his grip around wrist that hadn't shaken him off.

"I thought we finally connected, after our game this morning," Rex despaired.

His pleading however, was a wrong move. It flipped a switch –the wrong kind – that made Noah's eyes flash like fire.

" _Connected?_ You thought we connected over playing some balls?" Noah's words dripped with incredulity, "Hell, if you want to be connected so badly, here, let me get us connected!"

He yanked off Rex's hold on his wrist. And grabbed his short hair, yanked it painfully hard, dragging him down a few paces and throwing him into a random, empty bedroom.

Rex's cries of shock was impeded only by his sense of stupefaction at the sudden one-eighty of events and at what triggered Noah to turn into a beast.

Before Rex could protest, Noah kicked the weak parts at the back of his knees, tripping him face forward onto the bed. Then he felt Noah's palm weighing down the back of his head, pressing his face onto the bedspread.

"What's wrong, your nanite senses should have kicked in by now," Noah growled, tone steely, laced with a predatory undertone that made a shiver run between Rex's shoulder blades.

Yea, it undoubtedly did, but Rex was keeping his nanite constructs at bay.

"Unless, you can't wait for me to fuck you senseless," Noah whispered in a vulturine tone next to his ears, causing shivers to race down the side of his neck.

Then proceeded to bite Rex's ear, causing him to jolt with shock and a twisted sense of ecstasy.

"No – I –" Rex protested, but only half-heartedly, still undecided at his course of action.

Naturally, he let Noah decide for him, feeling the blonde climb over his back and roughly yank down his pants, exposing his bare buttocks. Rex gasped in shock and steeled himself, feeling Noah's already rock-hard shaft slap over his skin that was chilled in the night, but quickly warmed from the hot blood rushing underneath.

Rex almost asphyxiated, frightened at what was to come, nervous, but he forced himself not to run. Whatever Noah wanted to be done to him, Rex would give. It was inexplainable how he felt he has so much to pay for, that couldn't be paid finished.

However, he noticed he felt no further movements from Noah.

"Noah?" Rex called breathily.

He felt Noah's weight lifted off his back, leading Rex to crane his neck backwards to steal glances.

Noah looked slightly taken aback, as if he was shocked by himself at what he was doing. He knelt on his heels with his dick exposed, hanging out his open fly, hands slack by his sides. His cock was actually only half hard, ministration lost before it was fully engorged.

"Noah?" Rex tried again, tentatively, voice shaking lightly.

"Get out," Noah said so softly.

Rex froze, unbelieving Noah's mood swing.

"Get out," Noah repeated, louder this time.

"Noah, it's okay, you can do whatever you want," Rex croaked.

Despite his encouragement, it tore Noah apart, hands palming his face.

"Oh God, _please_ , Rex, _I can't,_ I just can't."

"Please," Rex begged equally fervently, twisting backwards and propping himself on one knee, stretching behind to reach for Noah's wrist.

"Don't be afraid, Noah. We can start over."

Noah stiffened at Rex's words and completely froze for two seconds. Then he returned to life, rocking uncontrollably, shaking his head and still refusing to meet Rex's eyes.

"I can't, I've become _so_ ugly, Rex, _bleeding_ , _festering_ inside me, _this thing_. I can't, I just can't. I hate you, I hate you, I hate you."

Rex felt his heart stabbed with Noah's every word, dripping bitterly as he rambled on. Yet it was achingly sweet at the same time, for Rex understood this Noah –every word of hate meant he loved him, but pity the man who was so tormented, he couldn't even say what he really meant.

That, made Rex bleed even more.

* * *

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

 ***Van Kleiss did to Breach:** From the original cartoon. Caesar was making a reference to what happened in the past – that Van Kleiss made a device that amplified Breach's powers, allowing her portals to transcend time.

 ***permanently deactivated the Master control nanites:** I continued this reference from the original cartoon. At the last episode, Rex bade them to never let anyone else use them again.

 ***Noah back on Abysus ground:** This refers to Chapter 33 – Xanubian first took Noah to bait Rex, so he could easily draw the latter into his isolated space-time bubble. However, that prompted Rex to draw out deeply sleeping powers, enabling Rex to reverse Xanubian's capture of Noah by a few seconds. He remained locked with the Time-Meta EVO however, and the activation and clashing of their powers spiraled out of control, sending them both into a space-time jump.


	45. Painful choices

**Chapter 45: Painful choices**

(Rex thought he could make amends, but he discovers a shocking truth….. Rex bleeds.)

* * *

 _I thought I knew who I wanted, what I wanted, if I could have it._

 _Now that I did, I realized I already had what I needed, all along._

 _But it's too late now, for I've already lost it._

Rex silently lands on the front porch of Circe's house –his house – and swallows hard, dreading this day for each day that passed. He'd initially fled this place, lost and confused in a reality that shouldn't be his. But he had to come back, to bring Riaena home.

Just of all the luck in the world, he'd picked the time when *Megan and Aunt Jo were also there. He didn't need his acute hearing senses to catch the howling filling up the house, threatening to rattle the tiles on the roof.

Megan, Aunt Jo, with Circe were locked in a loud argument between them. The sounds were muffled coming out the door, but the words still clear enough to be picked out coherently.

Megan was scolding Circe for leaving Riaena in Providence with Rex's care and Circe was arguing back, while Aunt Jo was barking at the both of them to cool down.

"Daddy, is everything okay?"

Rex glanced down at Riaena's solemn face. No doubt she has heard their shouting, so she was worried, and confused. Rex grimaced.

"Yea, don't worry, let's take shelter elsewhere for abit until the tornado in there dies down, yea?"

Rex barely made the two steps down when his ears prickled on Megan's words.

"My grandchild could have died! No- wait, my grandkid already died!"

The menace spilled out, stabbing Rex with guilt. _Yea_ , he remembered somberly, Circe had a miscarriage, supposedly due to his inattention. He hated having to learn that from Holiday the first time when they exchanged recounts.

His arms tightened around Riaena in cold comfort, wishing he could undo the past. He hated knowing the Other-him hadn't been around to protect Circe and their unborn child.

"Oh god! Mom, please! That's enough!" Circe screamed, followed by thundering steps afoot, "Stop blaming Rex for my miscarriage."

But then her next words dropped like a nuclear warhead.

"Because _that,_ _never_ happened, Mom."

Rex forgot how to breathe, dead silence mirroring the unholy silence from the other side of the door.

Then came Megan's words of disbelief.

"I don't believe you. Stop trying to make up excuses for him."

"It's true – Circe confided in me before – " came Aunt Jo's words, "Nine years ago, there was no child. Riaena was the only kid they'd conceived – _the only one they ever had._ "

Rex couldn't stay quiet at that point. He entered the house, entire body quaking, meeting Circe's shocked and guilty eyes with incensed rage.

"I'm just here to drop Riaena off."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

It wasn't hard to put two and two together and draw conclusions.

The day that 'Rex' never showed up despite Providence calling many times, the day that led to Six's death. 'Rex' had been with Circe the whole day, distraught, and at lost, overcome with grief over news of Circe's miscarriage.

But that had been a lie.

It was enough to sicken him, to turn him away from Circe's pleading cries, to turn a deaf ear to her apologies.

"The man is dead – what good will saying 'sorry' now do?" Rex had thrown acidly, before walking out the door – hopefully her life – and zipping back to Providence carrying a hell's pit within his belly.

One look at his face was enough to frighten everyone away, tip toeing a wide berth round him.

Everyone except Noah, who leaned along the corridor in lax fashion, arms and legs crossed.

"Your wife is hounding me," Noah held up his mobile on one hand, trying to show the dozens of missed calls she must have made when Rex refused to pick her line.

"She's not my wife."

Lava spilled down his lips, burning everywhere. Rex barely cast Noah a glance, trudging past him. He could melt the floor with the blazing expanse he felt within.

Noah, obviously not fearing death, caught him by the arm, which was a bad move, for today, Rex wasn't in the mood to be pliant and submissive towards him.

"You need to talk to her."

Buttons pressed, Rex returned the grip and swung Noah around, slamming him onto the wall.

"What are you? Some kind of masochist?" Rex gave an incredulous laugh lined with pain. "You want me so bad, yet you're violent with me, hot one moment then cold the next. And now you're trying to act our fucking marriage counselor?"

Rex shoved him roughly and let him off, limbs shaking from the effort of restraining his anger. The last thing he wanted, was to accidently hurt Noah in anger.

"You should go back to her. Don't let Six's death go in vain."

Rex balled his fists and banged the wall, cracking right into the concrete, smashing a few inches deep. Plaster and broken chucks splashed his arms, dusting the tops of his hair and left shoulder.

"You knew," Rex glared at Noah intensely.

"I checked hospital records a long time back," Noah said in answer, confirming it.

"Then aren't you angry at her too?"

"I was. Still am," Noah's lips were severe, "But what's done can't be changed."

"The last person I want to hear from sounding like a fucking forgiving Saint, is you. You don't exactly cut me any slack."

Noah licked his lips, frown mirroring Rex. "Listen, I –"

"Leave me the fuck alone!" Rex growled, cutting him off before taking in more bullshit.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Curled up on the bed on his side, a distant faraway look in his eyes, the light had long dulled, as if Rex had become more a shell and less a person with each passing hour. He'd been staring idly at a spot of the floor forever, until his vision blurred, when he noticed shoes on the floor in front of him.

Rex refocused his gaze and when he looked up, none other than Caesar was there.

"I hear you've been holed up in your room for two days. Not even food could beckon you," Caesar said in his usual matter-of-fact tone.

"Thanks for worrying, but I'm not dead yet."

Caesar sat down on his bed, elbows resting on his thigh, forcing Rex to scoot inwards a little more.

"Do you regret, Mijo, warping yourself here?"

Rex frowned at Caesar's question.

"Hey, it wasn't like I _chose_ to come here," Rex snapped, glaring at Caesar from the pillow.

"Then have you ever wondered why – assuming that there are hundreds and thousands of parallel dimensions –of all the possibilities you could have ended up in, you've ended up _here_."

"Geez, I don't know, you're the scientist – you tell me."

Caesar paid no mind to Rex's irritated tones, continuing in the placid manner of his.

"Your abilities activate on instinct, and for most part, before you learn to master control of the Meta-Nanite powers, you're driven by emotions. If I have to make a guess, I'd say, your rampant emotions was the cause of warping you to this particular dimension."

Rex snorted. "You don't say –even a dumb guy like me could figure that out."

"Then what about what your heart desired? Have you also figured that out?"

Rex flinched, then pulled his jacket tighter, hugging the collars closer round his neck.

Many things here, were different from his original world, so it was hard not to compare. And whilst comparing, Rex had come to be aware of how much he had that he was under appreciating, or neglecting, being the guy always staring at the greener pasture on the opposite side of the fence.

Rex had to admit, a small percentage – he can't say how much because he wasn't sure either, some days were more, some were less – in him, blamed it on his nanite powers that burdened him with the responsibly for being Providence's go-to solider.

Of course he wanted to help people, rescue them when they're in danger. But sometimes, just sometimes, he felt resentful –why him? Why did the universe select him? Why was he fated to be born at that specific time, into that specific family? He never asked for any of this. But since 'great powers' come with 'great responsibility', Rex couldn't shirk his duties. He thought that was the chain that bounded him for life.

But since coming into this dimension, he realized in chagrin, that he did in fact, have the choice to leave – this Other-Rex did it – got married to his girl, had a kid – the very life Rex _fantasized_ about countless of times. The proof showed Rex had no excuse. He thought he never had a choice when in actual fact, _he did_ – he just never chose to leave Providence.

It must be the greatest lack of foresight in the history of Mankind, for Rex to grasp this only now.

Before he knew it, he was spilling out his guts and brains to Caesar, having an introspective session. It wasn't just Rex's wishful thoughts of quitting Providence and having a normal life, that festered inside him. Noah, was also a cause of concern. Where he initially thought Noah joining Providence was the best ever, having official missions together, fighting side by side, having a blast, things somehow spiraled within the final two weeks. The most pitiful part was Rex couldn't even put a finger to why their friendship suffered so abruptly, saved only by their 'working' relationship and strong sense of Providence fellowship.

It took getting here, and having to painstakingly mend the broken pieces one by one, that Rex finally learns his heartache feels the same as when he broke up with Circe. How miserable it was, to realize he'd come to love his best friend, when it was already too late.

"So, do you regret warping yourself here?" Caesar repeated the question, turning a head back to regard him, eyes patient and thoughtful.

Rex finally pushed himself up to a sitting position, and bent his knees, planting a glum chin onto his knees, and stared at his toes.

"Well, I can't exactly regret it. Otherwise, I would have never known exactly had I had missed."

Caesar nodded and shifted, turning around more to face him, pulling one leg up, bending across the bed.

"That's right, coming to this dimension had made you realize how much you preferred your original world, and how you should have treasured it. Unfortunately, the fact remains, that this is part of your reality now, at least, until we figure a way to send you home."

Rex shifted his gaze to meet Caesar's eyes, whose gaze was solemn, serious, and looked the way like an older brother would on counseling a younger brother.

Caesar reminded him, that all the experiences, the emotions that Rex was going through, and how Rex dealt with this situation, was just as important as him treating it like how he would in his own dimension. Rex can't just shrug off things he doesn't like and pretend to not know how to deal with it.

"I know the situation with your new found family troubles you, but think of it this way, you wouldn't abandon Providence back there and here, and wouldn't forsake peoples' lives no matter the dimension you're in, so, just ask yourself, how would you treat the conundrum of this unexpected wife and child? Granted, I know they aren't exactly 'your' wife and child, but you still shared history with Circe, don't you? You dated her, was her boyfriend once. I think at least that much, should give you cause to give a firm, responsible answer to your Other-self's wife."

Rex flinched, withered by Caesar's shrewd and irrefutable words. He didn't need to be reminded of the nasty and horrid way he had left things with his supposed mother-in-law. And how he just ran off and abandoned Circe and his supposed daughter. Of course, he'd like to say his excuse was that he was not prepared for all these developments – that he was not ready be a husband, have kids or deal with extended families.

However, Caesar's words hit home: whether Rex had wanted this or not, the fact was, fate had thrust them into his hands. It was cowardly and wrong of him to run away from it, avoiding dealing with it properly. Instead of properly talking to Circe and coming to a consensus, he used Providence as an excuse to stay away from home, ignoring the problem.

Before Rex realized it, his vision had become glassy again.

"I'm sorry," the words fell out, "I know I disappointed you."

Caesar said nothing and just pulled his head into his chest, stroking his hair.

"Nay, Mijo," his tone softened, so gentle, it reminded him of a long forgotten memory of when Caesar comforted him as a young kid, way before the Nanite Event happened.

"Listen, no matter how things may change, be it in this or the other timeline, or dimension, the fact that we're brothers, and that I will always support you, will never change. No matter what, I will always be here."

Arms climbing around Caesar's arms and clutching the sides of his labcoat sleeves, Rex sobbed like little kid.

There was no more half-assing about this. It was time, to wise up.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

When Rex left his room, with Caesar right behind, he was surprised to see Noah leaning on the wall right next to his door, with an unfathomable gaze, dark, and also filled with something else. He locked gazes, and Rex wondered for a moment if Noah had been standing outside listening.

Caesar made a subtle excuse to get back on his research, turning down the corridor and disappearing round the bend, leaving the two young men alone.

Noah held up his mobile again, his screen flooded with Circe's missed calls. It suddenly prompted a befuddled laugh from Rex.

"She could have come here in person."

"She can't. Homeland Security is a lot stricter now. The last time she came, she entered with a confidential password. She had since received a warning so she can't trespass Providence grounds again. Not even Caesar or Holiday has any say in this."

Rex's brows jerked.

"I wasn't aware that much changed within a span of a few days."

"Yea, this happens here a lot. Thought you should be used to this by now."

"It's hard, I've got seven years of catching up to do," Rex shrugged.

A smile tugged at the corner of Noah's lips, which was almost miraculous. It was the strangest thing, for either one or the other or both to be boiling hot at each other one moment, then the next, they've cooled down with some sort of truce. Rex wondered warily if it would always be this way between them, but realized that no – it wouldn't, since Noah had warmed up considerably compared to the first time they met at the cemetery.

"And right now, I have some catching up to do with Circe."

"Good, finally, I can get some peace," Noah said and nodded in approval, yet the corners of his lips drooped, and his shoulders hardened into a bunch, betraying the turmoil inside.

Rex felt his gut tighten, all the way up his throat. He had to talk to Noah properly too, clear the air, dish the dirt, but first, he has to do right by Circe.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Circe was a mess, hair tied into an untidy knot, tear-stained cheek gleaming under the florescent light of their living room.

"Rex!" she cried and launched on him the moment he appeared at the door, clawing at his jacket, sobbing and apologizing hysterically into his shoulders.

Rex wrapped his arms around her and patted her back – it was the only thing he could do until she calmed down. But this situation was also making it hard for him to go through his intent. He was still angry at her, but he was weak to her tears, and could not help softening. He was stricken on feeling her wrecking sobs against his chest, small frame shaking to hard he worried she might break into two. He had never seen her so terrified, so broken up like this.

Tough, independent Circe, shielding a vulnerability that once made Rex ever more drawn into her – that strength she had, despite her fears, made her so attractive to him. Even when they broke up, Circe displayed a stubbornness, holding up a proud, trembling chin, adamant of her choice despite the heart ache. Yet here now, there were no efforts made to hide her distress, tough image shed, revealing all her fear.

Rex regretted being the one to make her this way, and was further remorseful of how he was going to make it worse for her tonight.

Still, he reminded himself – no half-assing.

He slowly guided her inwards, kicking the door shut with his foot, and sat her down on the coach, still keeping her within his embrace. He hoped to make themselves more comfortable, seeing as to how Circe's crying fit wasn't going to end soon.

However, Circe relinquished the position at his chest, and leaned upwards, pressing their lips together, her trembling breath licking between his lips.

"Circe," her name spilled flustered from his lips as he suddenly found himself pressed into the back rest, Circe having climbed in between his thighs, tangling their legs together.

"Please, Rex," she cried softly, pleadingly in between urgent presses, hot tears burning his cheeks as it dripped pitter patter on his face.

Rex swallowed a sigh, and obliged, gently, and deeply, he re-angled his head so their lips fitted into the grooves of each other's lips, and he directed their kiss to be slow and measured.

His chest raced, teasing flutters right around the edges, a lingering reminder of the woman he once loved. He had to admit, his feelings remained strong, giving him sweet reminisce at the warmth they exchanged with their lips and hands that held onto each other. But those feelings were more evoked from his recollections, then his current want. He understood then, that Circe was still important to him, that forever she held onto a part of his heart, as a special person he would always care a lot for.

But no longer as a lover. That much, was clear to him.

When he felt her frenzy lulling, movements becoming slow and calm, Rex gingerly pulled away and shifted on the couch so that they could have a bit of distance between them, just so that they could have a proper conversation.

"Circe," he started, tones gentle.

She leaned over for another kiss, unwilling to talk, perhaps fearing what he would say. Rex turned his head sideways abit, showing his opposition. She froze, but luckily, she retreated back without making a fuss.

"Rex," she croaked, voice raspy from all her sobbing and crying.

He reached out and tried to soothe her hair, chest tightening and pounding, struggling to put his meaning across as carefully and gently as he could. He told her, how much she once meant to him, but also how he can no longer return her feelings. He cannot pretend to live a loveless marriage, to lie in her face with words of love when he was aching for another.

She teared up again, so Rex drew her into his arms in what little comfort he could offer, apologizing against her forehead.

He apologized taking so long to tell her this, for running away without another word, avoiding her whilst he warred within himself long and hard. It hadn't been easy, deciding what to do, and deciding what was or wasn't the best thing to do. In the end, he felt the right thing was for him to be true to himself, and be honest to the both of them. He was once over the moon, loving her, and was crushed, when she broke up with him.

Needless to say, Circe still didn't want to believe it, didn't want to buy the story where he said before, how she was supposed to marry Skwydd, having his kid. Rex had to remind her, that he came from another dimension. So as much as it hurt her that he couldn't continue their relationship, he wasn't really the same husband she married. And while there were some things he could take over and fill the gaps, like fighting by Providence's side, things like taking over someone's place as a lover, was not agreeable in him to achieve.

"I know," she breathed out a shaky sigh, "I know what Caesar told me. It's not like I didn't understand."

She shook her head, eyeing him sadly. "But it's just, it's hard to look at you and think you're a different person."

Rex gave a grimace.

"Yea, I know exactly what you mean." Rex thought about a certain blonde haired man.

They talked for hours, Circe having calmed enough to stop her tears for a good portion of the night. She was still hurt, and more than that, confounded with having to face reality that the Rex before her, was not her real husband, and that _her_ 'Rex' had disappeared somewhere.

It was a bitter pill to swallow, and Rex was sure the fault was no less caused by him. He couldn't be sure, but he may have somehow displaced the 'Rex' of this dimension. Whilst everyone was struggling to deal with his sudden foray back into Providence life, many have kind of blindsided the fact that their 'Rex' had been missing a long time.

On the other hand, no one could be blamed for that, as the concept of having two 'Rexs' and alternate dimensions was a huge conundrum to wrap one's head around. Of course, there was also the matter if the Other-Rex never returned, and he gets stuck here forever… well, that was enough contemplation for one night before he splits his brain.

It had come to night by the time Rex stood to leave, but not before checking on Riaena, sleeping in her room. She was the exception that they agreed together, would remind – Rex would remain as her father, for as long as necessary – it's not like they could expect a child to understand something as complex and as mind-fucking as alternate-selves. Anyway, this time, Rex promised he would be a better dad, and come back more regularly to check up on them.

When he came down the stairs, Circe was there waiting for him, fingers curled around a green suit. Rex felt a torrent of emotions well up within him, seeing it.

"I think you should keep this."

Rex nodded stiffly, and took it with him.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Returning to base, Rex knew the dark silhouette moving in his room was Noah even before he turned the lights on.

"You're making a mistake." His voice was gruff, but unusually displaced. Rex had no doubts Noah was affected by his decision to make a clean break from Circe. Red turned and took two steps to hang Six's coat on a coat hanger that was drilled to the wall, where he normally would hang his jacket, before answering.

"No, I did what was right by my heart," Rex defended firmly, not bothering to pretend he didn't know what Noah was talking about. He'd known Noah had hacked into his comm-link and was listening in to his conversation with Circe. He was sure Noah was fully aware that he would notice.

Noah took a deep breath, looking at him with disbelief, standing next to Rex's desk, a shaky knuckle pressed onto the tabletop.

"Caesar said it, didn't he? – that you might have jumped into this dimension following your inner desires. Wasn't _this_ , what you wanted? A normal, family life?" Noah pressed.

"No, that's not it. That's what I _thought,_ I might have wanted."

Noah's lips trembled, staring at him quietly for the longest time, the only sound, came from their deep breaths.

"So even Circe – she's not who you want?"

"I believe you've heard every word in my house."

Noah shifted his weight from one leg to another then took measured steps towards him, gaze locked onto him like a homing beacon.

"But you loved Circe. You wanted to marry her. You used to talk about it, all the time." Noah stopped just an inch shy of their noses touching.

"Yea, I did. Definitely. But since we broke up, the one I slowly fell in love with, was my Noah – _from back home_."

Noah's breath hitched, jolted by Rex's sudden reference to a Noah that wasn't him. Rex swallowed down the painful lump at his throat. It was painful, to see the shadow of who he loved, wearing the same skin. He was also Noah, just as how Holiday was Holiday, and Caesar was Caesar. They were one and the same copies of each other, yet at the same time, they are different, since they're from different dimensions.

Rex came to this realization after his long talk with Caesar.

The trouble came with Rex not able to distinguish them from his feelings tied to the ones back home. Not to say he doesn't care for these people – he does – but as the dynamics of their relationship were slightly different, Rex realized it was wrong to impose his memories and feelings of the 'originals', onto these people. They were their own characters – just like how Rex was his own man, having chosen a different path from the Other-Rex. He fought trying to get the folks here to see _him_ , to recognize that he was _different_ – and essentially, he was.

So just like how he had to get Circe to see that he couldn't love her the way _her_ Rex did, Rex shouldn't overlay his feelings on Noah either, because the 'Rex' that Noah was tortured over, wasn't _him_. It was suddenly startling clear to him –they loved the one from their own dimension, _not_ each other.

And even if the break from Circe freed Noah and him, gave them the excuse they needed to get together anyway, Rex had too much integrity to allow himself that pleasure. Already, he had done more than enough wrongs towards Circe – he just couldn't let her suffer further, seeing the man who looked like her husband fuck someone else. It was too cruel.

Noah's eyes turned large and rounded, gaze boring deep into his. Then his lids lowered, understanding passing over his cerulean depths. Rex didn't doubt for a moment that Noah would understand. He was the man who wanted 'Rex', ached and agonized over him, yet at the same time, struggled with doing the right thing to keep the husband and wife together. Rex was the one who had been pushing him, peeling off his shields and cornering him till he couldn't keep control.

How callous Rex had been, damning Noah to agony by forcing it down his throat to accept him, to think him different. Rex suddenly understood Noah's inability to express himself to Rex properly, because of all the conflict and pain that tore at him. The Other-Rex had already stabbed him, having chosen Circe. And this Noah, had lived with that, resigned to that. So when Rex comes barging into his life, exposing his true feelings and forcibly returns his own, it tortured Noah. Because even if the two Rexs were different, there was no way Noah could just fuck the man with the face of another woman's husband. It was a cruel joke.

It explained Noah's polar behaviour, hot one moment, cold the next, dying to want him, yet unable to. There was no way Rex could undo the decision that his alternate-self had made. And as much as he hoped to make the Noah of this dimension happy, the damage had already been done. If anything were to change, it had to be by the Alternate-him, _if_ it was even possible to locate him. Rex knew without a doubt, the only one who could heal Noah, really ease his suffering, was the very 'Rex' who had torn him apart in the first place.

So Rex can't choose Noah. _Not here. Not him_. It was painful, but it was the only way. It was the _right_ thing to do.

Besides, when Rex thought about the damning quarrel he had with _his_ Noah back home, his heart ached. _Painfully so_. He had disappeared in the middle of a whirlwind of crazed emotions, leaving things with his Noah unsolved. He couldn't imagine how Noah must be suffering – how he left him with their last memories together as biting and fraught with pain. He had so been wrapped up in the drama here, he had neglected the ones he had left behind.

 _Back home._ Most likely waiting for him, no – _panicking,_ over his disappearance. What was the sort of turmoil they might experience? What devastation was _his_ Noah going through? Rex hated this. Hated being the cause of it. Hated he was clueless on getting back.

And damn how he wanted to go home. To see _Six_ again – see him alive and well.

And his and Holiday's child.

See Bobo's sarmastic mug.

See Noah, and confront his feelings so he could confess he felt the same way.

To _kiss_ Noah. Oh how he _ached_ for it.

Those eyes warm like the pool under the hot sun, like Cabo Luna, iris flickering like playful waves. Lips always teasing and lively. Noah who consoled him upon his break up with Circe. Who forfeited his chance as a normal civilian to fight alongside him in Providence. Who had given him fluttering kisses out of a tiny, desperate hope. Who grew insanely jealous of another man he thought was snatching Rex from under his nose.

 _Noah._

How could Rex have not thought about him? Since coming here, he had been so overwhelmed with the people here, the distinction blurred between faces that looked the same.

Well, no more.

He made sure he had expressed it clearly to Other-Noah, that there was not gonna be any more confusion from his end.

They shared a long moment of silence, gaze holding each other's like two sailors who had long been adrift at sea, and only now, had the shores within their sights.

Their tumultuous relationship, and emotions, have to stop.

"Do you really love him?" Noah asked softly, the first to break the silence after a long while.

Rex nodded. "But I only realized that, after getting here."

Noah licked his lips, face edging ever closer. Rex could swear Noah looked almost forlorn, as if sensing this was the end of Rex hounding him.

"And he? He loves you?"

"I sure believe so," Rex gave a bitter sweet half smile.

Noah suddenly dived for his lips on those words, breathing in deeply, lips opening wide and enfolding Rex's lips into his. Rex gave in, allowing himself what he felt was the last guilty pleasure they would have. Their arms snaked around each other, drawing comfort from each other's warmth, and sadness.

Finally, they pulled away, but Noah still held him close, and ran a firm thumb over his lower lips.

"I'll help you get back," Noah suddenly swore, "I swear I will." A grit came to his eyes, determined and sharp, taking Rex by surprise.

Before Rex could say anything, he pressed another chaste kiss at the corner of his lips and murmured against him.

"And after that, I'll get _my_ Rex back. By whatever means necessary."

Rex laid a gentle hand on Noah's cheek.

"Then, what would you do, once you get him back?"

A haughty smirk mismatched with resigned eyes met him.

"I'll tell him how he's missing all my kisses," his smile faded, "But that's okay –" he combed Rex's hair back, "Because I've kissed you, and it's enough for me."

Hearing that, of course he had to let Noah continue to nibble and suck his lips, even if guilt was screaming at the back of his head to stop. Noah pressed them backwards, till Rex's back hit the wall, continuing to kiss him like his life depended on it. But when Rex's lips were starting to hurt from Noah's ardent kissing, he tore his face to the side, panting heavily, needing respite.

"Ahh fuck," Noah let out a groan of frustration and rested his head against the crook of Rex's neck. "We shouldn't – but I can't. It's hard to stop, damn it!"

Rex mused to himself how Noah was a lot less restrained, and a lot more gentle today. He was glad for that, thankful that Noah was healing, coming to terms with his feelings that didn't focus on the hurt. Rex kept those thoughts private, instead, gave a half smirk.

"Wow, I hope when I return, _my_ Noah is as passionate about me as you."

"He better be, no Noah alive could ever resist this," Noah growled, feral gleam flashing over lusty eyes as he rocked his hips against Rex in meaning, drawing a breathy moan from Rex's lips.

They were both hard, but Rex already made his intent clear to himself. So it was time to put a stop.

Rex lightly pushed Noah off, a small, imploring laughter escaping as he did. Noah got the hint, and finally released him, putting a foot's distance between their lust-ridden bodies.

"Well, I certainly hope so." Rex smiled, despite the cold uncertainty wrapping his chest. Was it even possible, for him to get home?

 **End of chapter.**

* * *

*Megan: Appears in Chapter 35. The Alternate-Circe's mom. Aunt Jo is Circe's Alternate Aunt.


	46. Full Circe

**Chapter 46: Full Circle**

(While Rex makes peace in his heart, trouble hits – but it seems there's an opportunity to ….. )

* * *

The week passed like a gentle lull of rain –a tinge of melancholy whisking round the sides of Rex's chest, yet quivering with a spark, hopeful and at peace.

Noah was his usual gruff and sarcastic self, as if their reconciliation from the other night never happened. Though, his sarcasm comes with the ends of his lips twitching with a smile, and with eyes that danced furtively between warped humor and warmth.

Rex told himself that he was more than satisfied with that. He has won over most of the Providence combat troops, and staff from the other department. Earning their trust and fighting place by their side hadn't been easy. They'd come a long way adjusting themselves to do battle without Rex's help.

Sure, there were lives lost, and irreparable damages in more ways than one, but many familiar faces remained, still fighting the good fight. The realization that Providence could still persevere without him, was quite amazing. That thought, was the most freeing of all – because it meant Rex being in Providence, was no longer a must-do-or-die scenario.

Rex had a choice and could choose.

And in between missions on days when he could afford the time, Rex flew back to see Riaena, even if only for a precious hour or two.

Caesar and Holiday both expressed concern over Rex burning himself out. Their worries were well founded with what happened before. It had been rocky for the Other-him when he tried juggling both.

Rex nodded cautiously, knowing full well how they felt. But he told them, having to choose one over the other, was worse.

"I know it's gonna be hard, but it doesn't mean I have to stop trying. I want to have both – Caesar, Holiday, I'll find that balance."

The two Science Heads looked at one another, then back at him, and smiled.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

On an afternoon without any SOS or incidents requiring Providence activation, Rex went over to the lab, as he usually did. He expected the science team to be busy as usual, but as he passed the small canteen, a brief sweep over the place made him stop, and do a back track.

He quickly counted heads, checked his watch, then frowned a little. He knew the science department did shifts, had rotating break times and such, but he had never found so many of them taking tea break at the same time –or rather, all at once.

Having a strange feeling, Rex hurried over to the lab, and found the voices of two of his favourite people in the world, having an altercation. No wonder their team had left the room, sensing that these two Heads needed a private moment. Even before reaching the lab, he used his acute hearing to tap into the walls, and heard Holiday strongly disagreeing with Caesar, arguing loudly even, worrying Rex for the moment.

Reaching the door, he was about to step in for damage control and check what was wrong, but he stopped, hearing his own name in her next line.

"You _can't_ also take Rex away from me!"

Rex didn't know why, he flipped and plastered himself on the side wall instead of entering, chest becoming constricted with anxiousness.

"Holiday, you know _he_ does not belong here. Keeping him away from his original dimension, or timeline, could have disastrous consequences in the long run."

"From the way _I_ see it, he's doing an awful lot of good."

Rex could hear Caesar sigh.

"Holiday, stop being so stubborn, just think about what happened to _our_ Rex – we can't find our own 'Rex' till this date. We don't even know what happened to him, or where he disappeared to because of the space-time warp. If we don't try to right this, we may actually lose _our_ 'Rex' for good."

Holiday didn't take that well, as she argued back crossly, which troubled Rex. Holiday usually took things calmly and seldom lost her temper like this. He deliberated awhile, wondering if he should go in to calm her down, when suddenly, Holiday yelped, and then the sound of glass crashing on the floor resounded through to Rex's ears.

"Holiday!" he heard his brother exclaim, "Be careful! Are you alright?"

Rex was torn between rushing in to check if they were okay, but didn't want to miss out on catching any details that they might otherwise keep from him. So very quietly, he hurried to the side door where a row of semi-curved shelves as tall as the door, rounded the room, leaving a narrow width of walkway that blocked the view of those who entered. Rex entered through that door and silently crept along the shelves.

He could hear Holiday dismiss Caesar's worries – she hadn't hurt herself – just knocked over a trolley and some porcelain cups. But she suddenly sniffled and sounded sad, apologizing to Caesar for flaring up.

"It's okay, Holiday, I understand," Caesar's breaths turned heavy all of a sudden, "You miss him –" it doesn't take a genius to know he was referring to Six – "and you're afraid of losing Rex too."

"Oh Caesar, I don't want to be left _all alone_."

"You're not, you have Gift, and the science team, _me_ included."

Rex could pick up faint trembles in Holiday's breathing, hitching, and the rustling of their thick, heavy labcoats. Something strange ran through his mind, picking up on sounds that were too quiet for him to interpret properly. So he gingerly shifted some books and dared to peek in between a narrow gap, finding Holiday and Caesar standing close together, Casear's arm on Holiday's like he had helped her up, looking down at her, noses just an inch from each other's.

Holiday's lids fluttered close in the next moment, lips rising up towards his brother. Rex's heart thudded in his chest and he felt his head pounding, torn between busting in to stop them, or carrying on watching transfixed at this strange turn of events. The whole situation felt thoroughly strange and wrong – even if Six was already gone from here, Rex couldn't see anyone replacing him. Before he came to a decision on what to do, Caesar pulled back sharply and faced away, stuffing his hands into the side pockets of his coat.

"Sorry, Holiday, _I can't_ , Amelia is…" he paused abruptly, and from the back, Rex could see abit of Caesar's side profile, noting that his jaw tightened, and his shoulders stiffened.

Holiday shook her head quickly.

"Yes, of course, I'm sorry… Amelia is my best friend….. We shouldn't."

Then awkward silence came between them, heavy and depressing, each retreating off to their own corner to continue their work. With his own heavy thoughts over what he saw, Rex too, quietly left.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex plowed through the EVOs right in the middle of the city.

They were a mash of creatures, mutations as varied and as eye-popping as they could come.

Security patrol had already evacuated three streets when the first sightings appeared, and dealt with the first handful adequately. But then it quickly grew to a couple dozen by the time by the time Rex jetted over. He took in their grim reports, and confirmed with his own eyes over the multiple EVO relapses happening almost simultaneously.

More evacuation troops have reached, hurrying to transport city folks away from the danger, covering a no-civilian zone of a fifty mile radius. But it seemed futile, as reports over comm-links cited other patrol teams posted elsewhere, reporting the same dire situation. There was no way Rex could be in more than two places at once.

"Rex, we're spread a little thin, so we're attaching only one tag-team at your street."

"No problemo, Captain Calan," Rex radioed over whilst he raced along a stretch on his favorite bike-form. He modified it slightly to incorporate two metal wheels underneath the central body, channeling electric currents through it. Bright blues and whites funneled outwards from the wheels, spinning like a small tornado, starting out sleek and compressed, then stretched out and spattering over the sidewalks like errant showers of lightning bolts.

He effectively zapped a handful of EVOs, either paralyzing them with the voltage or knocking them unconscious.

The combat troop sent to his area made quick work finishing up the job, quickly securing Providence collars over the EVOs' necks and limbs to keep them immobilized. The Captain wasn't kidding when he said they were low on manpower – the tag-team consisted only four guys, and Rex knows they normally deployed at least three tag-teams to secure each area of this threat level.

Thankfully, his tag-team was well organized and fast, proving themselves highly capable when together, they cleared the street faster than Rex initially thought.

"One street cleared, Captain, moving onto the next."

"Good work. Keep it up."

Rex and his team wasted no time. He let the guys get a foothold on his ride before zipping them over the corner for more action.

Despite the heart stopping dangers and action demanding all of Rex's attention, he picked up on something that disturbed him, like a vulture cackling at his face for their stupidity.

"Holiday, Caesar," Rex radioed in the middle of ducking under and over monstrous, sticky vines stretched from building to building across the street. An EVO had shot the thick, viscous fluid like white paint, nary seconds ago, which caught two of his tag-mates and semi-hardened quickly, looking like giant cob webs entangling them.

"What's your update, Rex?" Holiday asked.

"The *collars that providence used, are they are different from the *bracelets the government issued?"

Rex found the culprit shooting strings of thick saliva from the middle section of one of the skyscrapers. It was a spider head from which dangled a wholly human body, perched proudly at the edge where the floor to ceiling glass had been broken. From both sides, EVOs dashed past him and either crawled along the outer blue-tint glasses of the building face, or dived downwards, landing harmlessly onto the streets below, or flew upwards overhead.

 _Oh great – not the type with wings –_ an inward grumble came into Rex's head.

"Yes, the ones the government issued to the post-EVO civilians, are from the *private research facility we told you about. Ours are purely developed and produced in-house."

As she talked, Rex fought with the spider-head EVO and took it down after a quick fight. It wasn't that tough. But now he has to go chase down a couple of flying EVOs, but not before slicing his teammates clean out the gluey webs restraining them.

"Right," he said windedly, as he ducked razor sharp boomerang-like body-parts ejected from one of the Pterodactyl-like EVOs. "Because I'm pretty sure I saw a couple of those bracelets on those EVOs."

There was only one explanation for why people were reverting into their EVO form, all over the place and seemingly the same time.

More boomerangs flew towards him simultaneously, cutting too close for him to cut right out of the path. A combination of quick thinking, instinct and major nanite-building in overdrive, made him abandon his big and bulky jet pack. It was instantaneously replaced by swept-back wings over his back, mirroring a jet-fighter, except his wings were doused in blue-light – aviation powered by the same energy of his Slyder.

He spun in dizzying three-hundred sixty degree swiveling turns, continuously like a circus act diving through columns of rings. His wings smoothly twirled in and out of the EVO's projectile, cutting in close – too close, really – dive-tailing till he got out of the projectile path unharmed.

The pause from the other line took about that same amount of time, before Holiday and Caesar both cried in unison.

"Shit!"

As Rex and the combat troops continued taking down the EVOs, Caesar radioed back after a while, to update the rest of the troops that the bracelets were hijacked by a frequency that messed up the bracelet's function.

"It's likely an inside job, and I have already alerted Intel – so they will get to the bottom this."

From the mild frenzy lining his tone that was usually unfazed, Rex could only imagine just how beside himself Caesar was. Holiday's sigh could be heard too, followed by her lament.

"We were too careless. We should have fought against that *policy harder."

No doubt the Science department was going crazy at the moment.

"No use regretting. We need to think of what we can do to salvage the situation," Captain Calan reminded sternly. "Can you jam the frequency?"

"We most likely can – " Holiday got cut off by Caesar's next words.

"But we won't, not yet."

Rex was surprised – he was sure everyone was – but he waited for Caesar to finish explaining.

"I suspect Time-Meta EVO and the Modifier has planned for a big showdown to happen right about this time."

As if on cue, Rex spied their army of *Time-bots from his vantage point among the tops of the skyscrapers, and his eyes nearly bulged out. They looked slightly smaller, but they moved with more dexterity, and there were numerous of these Time-manipulative machines.

They filed the streets, waddling on their flexible coiled legs, looking like a bronze sea rippling across the streets. Their clawed arms were latching onto any cable, any electronic device and anything with a power supply, and most horrifically, they _multiplied_.

Split forming right down their centers like an inorganic monstrosity, pulling apart from one another whilst their inwards fleshed out the rest of its mechanical, clog work body like nanite-active metals.

Horrified shouts flooded Providence comm-lines. Rex just remained frozen, hovering in the middle of the sky, having just dealt the last winged-EVO.

These upgraded Time-Bots filled every branch of walkway, increasing in mind-blogging numbers and wherever they passed, they left a trail of eerie ruin.

Lamp posts, metal fixtures, vehicles – they rusted like a video set on fast forward, copper-red dust eclipsing the objects, like red termites on a ravaging rampage. And where once stood a proud article, it became bent over, crumbled, rusted and decrepit.

The same went for the trees and shrubs which were meticulously plotted along the walkways. It darkened and shriveled up, rotting impossibly fast, turning into decay in a few blinks of an eye, dead and lifeless.

Ashen grey followed behind the life-sucking, bronze ocean of Time-bots, the concrete jungle devastated right before Rex's eyes.

He shook uncontrollably, horror-struck and enraged by the perpetrators mad enough, and black-hearted enough to create this. It was lucky all the people in the area had been safely evacuated, otherwise, threads of life would flicker out, drained by these unholy creations.

"Rapid degradation," Holiday breathed, voice tight and shaking, likely seeing the same visage at Main Control via satellite footage.

"But why, how?" Rex's voice mirrored hers.

"The Time-bots must be programmed to fast forward the 'Time-Span' of the object it touches," Caesar explained plainly, voice thin, as if that was easy to comprehend.

"We need your expertise, Doctors, give us advise on what we should do," Captain Calan garnered his wits enough to push the whole team along forwards to deal with the horror overwhelming the city. If they do not stop them, the sea of reapers would surely expand, and no one will be able to escape.

"Right, sorry, it's just suck a shock, seeing this from main control," Casear quickly apologized, then continued, "Actually, luckily, we have a way to stop them, to reverse it too, if you will. But that will require Rex's help."

"Tell me what to do, and I'll be on it."

"Noah knows the plan. Just rendezvous with him at this coordinates Intel's found, that I'm sending over to you right now."

"Wait, _just us?_ "

"The rest of the troops have to remain in position to keep them distracted. Modifier and Time-Meta EVO isn't to realize that you're going to sneak into their base."

Hearing that, it dawned on Rex that the Science department might have somewhat been prepared for these upgraded Time-bots. The bracelet triggers – likely not, but a frequency jammer would be simple enough for the Science team.

No wonder they said they won't jam the frequency to reverse the EVO relapse yet – they didn't want to alert Modifier that Providence was capable to deal with their plans. This will leave their base unguarded, making it easier for Rex to strike them.

"You guys are geniuses," Rex commented, lips turning upwards into a smirk despite the dire circumstances.

Then he radioed Noah.

"Hey buddy, what's your current location? I'll be right over to give you a lift."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

In between ragged valleys far from human populace, Rex and Noah snuck into the perimeters quietly and carefully, keeping an eye out for security cameras.

They spotted a cave opening alongside a cliff face, so they headed towards it. But before they went inside, Noah pulled something over Rex's head like a necklace.

Rex glanced at the strange pendant resting over his chest.

"A good luck charm?" Rex looked at Noah and gave an amused smile.

Noah grunted. "Just keep it on you. Caesar said it will come in handy."

They entered the cave, and since it was dark, Rex shifted his nanites to form narrow fixtures, then channeled some energy to run through them like embedded lights.

Noah stared at the glowing tattoos running over his body in a grid design, then complimented. "Nice one."

Rex flashed him a smile before they returned their focus on the place.

They noted the steel structures reinforcing the wide and tall tunnel. Metal frames curved along the walls and overhead at intervals, proving it was unnatural, and carved out by human hands – or by a super powered EVO or two.

They dared ventured inwards, hurriedly, and cautiously, when they met no opposition, no defenses or guards. Even if those two crazy EVOs sent armies to the city as a huge distraction, it can't be that they'd leave themselves so open like this.

Rex was wary, eyes dancing furtively, expecting a couple of Time-bots to jump them any second.

"This is almost too easy," Rex deadpanned, sensing that strange buzz within the dry, stuffy tunnels. He grew wary, keen awareness of danger gnawing underfoot with every step.

Thunderous sounds of earth and stone cracking, prompted Rex to dive over Noah and beam out his protective sphere before a section of the wall blasted outwards. A Time-bot's coiled arm extended through the wall it broke through, claws bracing Rex's shield.

"You spoke too early," Noah corrected grimly.

Luckily, Rex's photon shield offered a momentary resistance, saving them from a sped up death.

Rex scooped Noah in his arms and jumped away before his shield flickered out, right as more metal arms burst through both sides of the tunnel walls.

Cursing aloud, Rex jumped the hell out of the way whilst making his way inward, rebeaming out his shield each time it brushed the Time-bots' arms. They made through the tunnel zig zagged till it opened into a huge cavern that was brightly lit with flood lights crowning the tops of the large cavern. It gave clear view of two large, glass containment units, with an array of bronze colored metal fixtures and wiring protruding from it at the head and foot.

Rex could see Time-Meta EVO inside one, hovering unmoving in the center of its chamber, with dozens of wires connecting it with the chamber itself. The other EVO, whom Rex assumed must be Modifier, was about entering the unit next to Xanubian's.

"Modifier!" Rex called aloud in menace, putting Noah down, bunching his fists.

Finally, he has come face to face with it, noting its shining black form with rings of luminous yellow lighting stripping its limbs. Multiple wires encircled its head, hanging like a curtain around it, dangling loose before curving towards the various plugs of the available containment chamber. There was something oddly familiar with that appearance, but Rex didn't have the patience to mull over it just yet.

"What are you up to?"

Modifier crooked a head at him.

"Rex, I didn't expect you to come so early, _or to come at all_ –" it added abit of mirth in that last phrase, citing the Other-Rex's lack of response. It was just as well that Modifier wasn't aware of him coming from a different space-time.

Rex jolted suddenly, skin prickling from the danger his nanite senses picked up, and eyed his surroundings warily, eyes darting between dozen of coiled arms emerged from the sides of the cavern. They snaked inward slowly like snakes tasting the air, sensing for its prey.

"But you are too late anyway."

Modifier finished its conversation, then closed the chamber door over itself.

The metal arms sped in high speeds towards Rex and Noah as if some signal was given.

Both cursed aloud, assuming their former positions, with Rex jumping around frantically, Noah hugging his torso like a baby monkey clutching its mom.

There were too many arms and they were too fast and too flexible, often reaching his photon sphere before he could dodge. Rex was just barely fast enough to beam out a new spherical shield when one gave out. Attacks were useless too, since they would crumble his nanite constructs on touch, and any of his usual firepower will be absorbed into the claws as energy.

Thank goodness he had Noah. Noah had one arm clung around his shoulders, while his other fired off the special weapon that could take down the metal arms. The energy shots raced upwards through the claws, and exploded the arms midway, effectively destroying them. It gave Rex and Noah a chance of survival, given Noah's deadly aim. However, the onslaughts didn't decrease, as the silver serpents kept spawning from the rocky walls, bursting out like demons.

"Where the hell are they coming from?" Rex cried aloud in ire, muscles burning from leaping around non-stop. The exercise was more tiring due to him exerting energy to rebuild his shield over and over.

Rex could see no bodies of which the arms should be attached to, so he guessed they must be buried within the earth, behind the cavern hall. He threw Noah his thoughts, but Noah dismissed them like they were nothing.

"Ignore them, they're just a distraction."

Before Rex could ask him what he meant, Noah radioed to Caesar, asking if he was seeing what they were seeing. Likely Noah had a camera on him to record their surroundings, sending back video input to main control.

"Yea, I see them. I must confess I didn't predict Modifier would try to assimilate Xanubian into itself," Caesar related in a matter-of-factly.

Startled by his words, Rex spared glances over the containment units, realizing that the wires connecting the two EVOs within, brightened to a yellow hue, power zipping through. Obsidian crystallized colors washed over the glass casing, as if charged with energy, crackling over the metal connectors erected over the tops. Inside, the two EVOs writhed and spasmed with colored serpents crackling over them.

"You are fucking kiddin' me – Modifier is absorbing Time-Meta EVO?" Rex couldn't believe it. He thought they were working together. Who would have thought one would betray the other? But then again, he shouldn't be surprised at Modifier's ruthlessness.

"And so, do we still stick to the plan?" Noah pressed on.

"Yes, we do. The result will still turn out the same."

"What plan?"

In answer, Noah dug out something that looked like a pocket watch with a grenade pin. He used his teeth to release the safety and before Rex knew it, they were ballooned in faded green light, just as the rest of the world slowed around them.

"Holy cow." Rex was mind blown. The science team never said anything about being able to create gadgets of time manipulation. He surmised it must have been a recent breakthrough.

Rex stared around in awe at the snaking metal arms moving slowly, inch by inch. It gave Rex a huge breather, as needless to say, he has no problem ducking these machines at this turtle pace.

Noah on the other hand, wasted no time dawdling. He leapt off Rex's body and raced to the two central units, taking instruction from Caesar to rewire the cables and reset the device.

Seeing his meticulous work, Rex was inwardly glad he hadn't brashly jumped in to smash the machine as the thought did pass his mind. It appeared they had some use for it. Then he noticed Modifier madly bang against the glass, trapped as Noah locked it from the outside and the capsule seemed unbreakable.

Rex was no science whiz, but the air charging up in excited strum warned him of the danger Noah was doing.

"Wait, guys, are you deliberately feeding more power into that thing?" Rex took a giant leap over, landing hard on metal plating underfoot to protect his soles.

He noticed Noah plugging a couple of wires into the nodes of a small device he produced out from nowhere.

Rex's eyes bulged.

He recognized a power converter no matter the version – hell, he had built those components within his nanite constructs when he needed to funnel more power.

"Are you crazy?"

The electrified air buzzed dangerously, and strange whrrs were coming from the two units, straining and groaning from the power surge Rex knew it would not be able to withstand.

"Stop this! You're over-charging it! It's gonna blow!" Rex reached for the gadget, and noticed only too late that Noah made no move to stop him at all.

The moment Rex's fingers touched the metal device, he felt the insurmountable energy charge into him with the force of a dam breaking the wall. It felt like every fibre in his body swelled, every nerve jumping, veins about to burst. Yet he couldn't tear away from the device, electric currents forming an unbreakable comnection. Despite all these, Rex found the surprising ability to talk, jaw straining, teeth chattering from the effort of keeping control.

"W-what are y-you doing?"

"Opening your way home," Noah informed with his lips in a hard line. "Focus Rex – you are now a conduit of time, and the necklace has recorded Rift Signatures from Xanubian. Since you two came from the same dimension, it will take you back, but you have to channel the power correctly."

"B-but the city -the Time-Bots-"

"Will revert," Caesar's voice came over, "We don't have much time left, so to make it short, we've discovered the Time-Bots are all inherently linked to Xanubian. Now that you are tapped into the Meta-Nanite inside him, and siphoning off his power, you will automatically unwind the destruction on the city."

As like what Caesar informed, Rex could see, out from his eyeballs that burned like hot coal behind them, the Time-Bots vibrated rapidly whilst their inner cores brightened. They quickly became a blur of movement and color, blitzing like a digital image losing signal.

Rex could suddenly feel their presence, fading away from the physical dominion, yet not completely disappear. They swiftly dissolved into millions of specks of bronze ash, glittering like sunlight through dust, and they swarmed into invisibility, manifesting into this collective pool of force that entered him, joining the stream of power coursing through him.

"T-The EVOs-"

"Is not your problem anymore," Holiday radioed over, and despite the crackling sounds whipping the air outside his ears, he could still detect the heavy emotion in her voice.

"You need to get back. We said we would get you home, didn't we?"

Rex felt his heart swelling further, on top of the power surge, a heavy emotion steadily rising up within.

He did want to get home, but he never expected it was actually possible, or that the solution would come so quickly. On the other hand, should he just drop everything here and go? It felt like he was abandoning them for a second time.

"But my o-other-self is still m-missing."

"Don't worry about that, _I_ will find _my_ little brother," Caesar assured him, "And this time, we will find a way to make this work."

"C-caesar!" Rex protested, still half-reluctant.

Caesar made the decisive for him and took a deep breath.

"You have to go. Take my thanks with you, Rex, for showing us how – how we could give _our_ Rex the best of both worlds. How, we could do our part to give him happiness."

Rex didn't like the finality of his tone, even if good bye was inevitable.

"Goodbye. Rex. I know you will make it back safely," Holiday's voice cracked.

"Caesar! Holiday!" Rex screamed to no avail – they have already cut the line.

It left him and Noah, staring at each other, holding an ocean of words behind lips drawn closed and tight.

"I – I don't know if I can d-do this," Rex chattered out, body convulsing now, heating up like an over-charged battery.

He swallowed hard, seeing pieces from the furthest corner of his eyes darken, as if the cavern was crumbling apart at the seams. A great sense of fear snaked in, weighing on him that the energy was getting too wild for him to control.

It was perilous now – a slight veer in control and he was sure he might wipe out an entire chunk of this plane, or even accidently erase the existence of throngs of people. Cracks seemed to crawl inwards, from which burst in fragmented rays of white.

It seemed unlikely that Noah could see what he was seeing, or maybe Noah was too confident to panic, for he was calm and steady like a mountain, eyes clear and unyielding.

"You can do it," Noah's tone was firm, gaze confident.

Noah's belief in him, might have set Rex on the final course in his time-warp sequencing. Sure enough, his Omega-1 kicked in, churning the rest of his nanites along the directive Rex set his mind to.

He felt the Meta-Nanite of Time inside Xanubian, called to it, and felt it return his calls. The strangest script was swarming behind his mind's eye, almost hypnotic, sensory organs numbing, yet swelling with overwhelming sensitivity.

Rex felt Noah's name fall out his lips in a breathy cough – he wasn't sure, because he couldn't hear himself above the drowning blare of energy humming in and over his head.

His breaths were erratic – or maybe he wasn't breathing at all – he couldn't feel it either, chest raked through with shudders like he's falling apart, and cracking.

He wanted to scream that he couldn't take this – that the immeasurable power was going to crush him from inside out.

The whole cavern was fractured now, endless white seeping in, swallowing the earth rapidly and blinding him. Rays fanned out from behind Noah, overlapping his body.

 _Noah!_ Rex gave a silent scream.

"Go Rex," he heard Noah's encouragement buzzing like static, blue eyes shining with wet, unshed tears, as bright as the white light before it blanketed an eye.

"Go back Rex, and get Noah. Tell him, you love him."

Then the remaining semblances of reality, of that physical world, broke apart into billions of particles, reflecting dazzling light, like they were just pixels in a virtual world.

It left behind a pure white space, ethereal, unlike heaven or hell. Just tranquility.

Then it receded inwards, darkness eating the light from all corners until the white floor beneath him gave way, and darkness swallowed him whole.

 ** _To be continued…_**

* * *

 **Footnotes/ Recap:**

 ***collars/ *bracelets / *policy/ *private research facility:**

Recap chapter 40.

Caesar and Holiday informed Rex that EVO-revert was kept under control by special bracelets created by another facility. The Government made it mandatory for all post-EVO civilians to wear it, to prevent a pandemic from breaking out.

However, the Science team have gleamed some dangerous factors from users wearing it, such as a high percentage of going into cardiac arrest at the point when the host's body entered a state of rapid nanite activation.

The proof was showed to combat officers in Noah's case in chapter 41. Noah's nanites were triggered and was relapsing. When the bracelet kicked in with the opposing frequency, Noah's body could not take the pressure, and had a heart attack. Rex saved him by curing him, which halted the bracelet's frequency.

Providence has their upgraded collars as well, similar to the original type from the cartoon that temporary holds down the EVOs. Their gadgets were devised and created in house, so were completely safe on the hosts' overall life.

 ***Time-bots:**

Recap chapter 39. Rex encountered the new type of machines created by Xanubian. He does not have the experience fighting against them, hence, he did not have the means of creating a suitable nanite build to combat it.


	47. Return

Can I be blunt? Sex next chapter... be patient to go through this first ;P

 **Chapter 47: Return**

(Rex finally returns home, and confesses what he should have realized a long time ago)

* * *

Rex must be floating forever. The weird sensation of being suspended in space. He was tired. Senses dulled like his life energy was ebbing out from him slowly. He struggled to open his eyes, but had no energy, body lethargic. Suddenly, he felt like he was flying, with air vibrations zipping past his skin.

No, not flying. _Falling!_

His eyes burst open but half shut against the rush of air slamming into him, stabbing his eyeballs. He was heading straight for a five hundred foot drop, the blurry and spinning ground below hurtling upwards frighteningly fast. The air slapping against him felt hot instead of cool, warning him of the speed he was hurtling down. Quickly getting a grip on himself, he forced out his newest photon-type, sleek wings and re-orientated himself upright, reducing his speed before he erupted into fire.

Searching the ground for a landing, he peered, making out the landscape more clearly. _Is this Abysus?_ Transported from one place to another, Rex was momentarily disorientated. But seeing the familiar dot of a blonde head made his mind clear. That visage called out to him, like a star on earth. Rex turned down at a forty-five degree, and raced downwards, flying like a bullet.

"Noah!" he called loudly, lungs beating rapidly to supply his body with oxygen as he takes this adrenaline-charged dive.

Noah faces upwards, and screams his name, prompting many heads –all heads to follow suit, looking upwards from the ground where he probably last disappeared. *He had been fighting a powerful, robotic nanite replica of Gravity-Meta EVO, then subsequently faced off with Xanubian, which feels like a long time ago. But whilst he had been away for months, it would appear his absence barely made a dent.

 _Good_ , it meant he returned to the same place at the same time.

Rex neared enough to catch the expressions on Noah's face, looking both terrified and relieved at the same time.

"Holy shit, Rex! Where did you disappear to? I saw you –"

Rex reached him, dropping down on his chest and toppling him right over, then swallowed his words with his mouth.

Nevermind that they were right in the middle of the ground, where everyone stared, jaws slack and eyes balling.

Noah stiffened from his awkward position on the ground, bum on the floor, palms bracing the ground, knees flanking Rex's side as he had wedged between his legs. Noah stiffened and froze, entire demeanor stunned, no doubt shocked over what suddenly came over Rex.

"I love you," Rex blurted after he pulled back, hands tight on Noah's shoulder. Noah's mouth was gasping like fish, incredulous look in his blue, blue eyes. _Oh god,_ that gaze, Rex felt his heart melting into a pool in his chest – how he'd missed those eyes.

"Uh, yea, sure man, me too," Noah said after recovering abit, soft frown on his face. "Am I missing something, Rex? What is going on? I mean, there was this *weird play-by-play of your crazy battle with all the ex-consortium gang, wayyy back, and then you suddenly disappeared into it!"

Rex laughed lightly at Noah freaking out and rambling. He was quite sure Noah just skipped over his confession, probably thinking Rex said that with the mindset of a friend. Before he could make it clear what he really meant, Six came in view, towering over the both of them on the floor.

"Rex, are you alright? Where did you disappear to?" Six asked, a rare anxiousness lining his tone.

Rex gave a small grin. "A trip to another space-time dimension."

"Excuse me?" Holiday's voice came over the line. Rex could imagine her quirking one brow in bafflement.

He gave a light laugh. "I think I should come back and explain everything."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

In the main control, facing White Knight on the screen and sitting opposite Six, Holiday, Captain Calan and his lieutenants, and various other heads of Providence's other departments, Rex gave the longest report he ever had in his life. Well, at least it was not as long as the story he recounted to the folks from the alternate dimension. Against White Knight's approval, Caesar was called in as well, on video comm on the screen adjacent to the Head Honcho of Providence. Rex was adamant that Caesar be around - White Knight's censure be damned. Rex felt it was sorta important for them to know, so they might have an idea of what could be, of what could happen.

He explained how he accidently sent both him and Xanubian through the time-warp as they fought over control of the small fraction of the Meta-Nanite of Time within the Time-Meta EVO. In the end, Rex was able to use that same connection to bring them back. Speaking of which, at the Abysus, before the team returned to base, a combat troop found Xanubian lying unconscious. He a little way off from where the rest of them were crowding Rex after he reappeared. Xanubian was miraculously, still alive – which was good, because Rex certainly didn't want death on his conscience either, considering that he had to make use of him to come back. However, Time-Meta EVO was utterly spent, and barely breathing, so Providence Medical team made immediate arrangements for his isolated imprisonment with medical support. He considered pointing out that they probably didn't need to secure him in top level lockup, since Rex took so much of his power to get back, he had utterly devastated whatever that was left of Xanubian's time-manipulation powers. Regardless, he was sure the science team would quickly come to that deduction on their own anyway, so he didn't interfere with their work, going back with Six and the others to share his story instead.

He talked about the situation at the other dimension, the alternate selves, the lives that changed, the decisions made, the subsequent consequences that happened and the like. As he recounted, Rex felt like he was looking at a history book, learning from his past adventure while gleaming insights into the future. It was the most peculiar experience, and a trove of wealth no amount of money could buy.

Needless to say, his story raised more than a few brows, and garnered dozens of questions, as it was so outrageous. There were many concerns too, worrying if this 'unwarranted' expedition might cause any deleterious impact in future. Rex was regretful that he couldn't allay their fears – he, himself, unsure of that either. But what he does know, is that he had likely displaced the Other-Rex from that dimension. Needless to say, 'his' disappearance was unhealthy, and Rex was feeling guilty over it, so he asked if Caesar could create a device to find his Other-self.

Unfortunately, Caesar expresses helplessness –he couldn't control which dimension to open, nor think of any method that would help them locate the Other-Rex. The *Null Void which he had once tore open to send Alpha Nanite, was the only dimension he had accurately triangulated and successfully breached. But then again, he had incorrectly deduced it as an empty space the inter-dimensional fabric. Still, Caesar being Caesar, doesn't say no to a scientific challenge, and readily agrees.

Rex brightens at this, especially when Caesar excitedly expresses his amazement at how his Other-self figured a way to send Rex back.

"I didn't know I was such a genius!" Caesar mused aloud, prompting White Knight to grunt agitatedly. "Same as you don't know how much of a nut-head you are."

Giggles were split between the team. White Knight's tolerance of Caesar was considered shocking, by normal standards. Caesar had after all, refused the offer to work as an official Providence staff, yet he drops in and out freely out of whim. And during his *short tenure years back, Caesar's whimsical and experimental nature resulted in many fruitless inventions. Six joked before that the no-nonsense, strict-to-a-fault White Knight was able to tolerate Caesar only because he had many years of cultivating patience from Rex.

On a somber note, or good news – depending on how one looked at it – Rex deduced the identity of Modifier – Black Knight. Though she looked different and sounded different, the similarities were more than the differences. There probably isn't really any surprise there – it explaining all the connection and happenings with the Consortium's recent appearance and their dummy replicas. It does bring some confusion as to her true motive, since her actions seem to make enemies out of the other consortium EVOs. Noting aloud that she betrayed her comrade even in the other dimensions, Six shook his head gravely.

"We may not know her full agenda, but we can be sure she herself, will likely be her own undoing."

The rest nodded along in full agreement. Amongst the top folks in the main control, Noah was there too, of course, standing at the back of the room with Bobo whilst the big shots took the front seats.

Rex of course, didn't exactly spill _everything_ – his convoluted relation with Noah was revealed to a bare minimum, which earned a perplexed expression from Noah almost all throughout the session. Rex quietly hoped Noah could bear with it, at least until he was done with his recount and was dismissed from the meeting.

It was already way past dinner by the time he was done and excused, but not before answering a furry of more questions. His stomach growled at that point, which made the other staff give apologetic, sheepish smiles, releasing him to dinner. He ate heartily, realizing he hadn't actually eaten for more than a day, considering how he time-warped after long hours of battle. He thought he would crash by now, but his body held up well enough, muscles and bones ebbing with only a dull ache. Which was probably just as well, as in the cafeteria, the other combat officers did not let Rex off. They crowded him, curious questions a plenty as by then, rumors of him time-warping had already spread across to the other departments, suddenly garnering him many inquisitive looks.

"Wow, someone's popular," Noah pointed out in between nibbles.

Rex noticed he barely touched his food, eyes sharing that same stunned and prying gaze, still in disbelief, yet obviously dying to hear more. Probably, Noah might also be dying to know why Rex kissed him full on the lips after dropping down from the sky.

Rex gave a blissful smile. "Yea, it's good to feel welcomed."

Noah's brows dropped at the corner a bit, expressing his sympathy, probably recalling that Rex suffered cold bruises from Providence folk in the other dimension.

Rex reached over to lightly brush Noah's temples with the back of his fingers, wanting to assure him that he was already alright. Bobo seemed to suddenly choke on his drink at that moment, and Rex thought he saw from the corner of his eyes, one of the guys from Delta – Nathan, maybe? – drop his fork into the soup bowl. Whatever, let them be surprised, Rex didn't care.

"Hey, Noah, don't worry about that, okay? I eventually won them over, remember?"

A stiff smile coupled with a faint blush spread across Noah's face and he coughed abit, quickly mumbling something about how those people were lucky he wasn't there, or he would give them all a good clout on the head.

A plethora of expressions ran over Noah's face, which Rex watched amusedly, finding the blonde's embarrassment and awkwardness really cute.

 _Later,_ Rex promised to himself, he will make Noah understand.

Right after they were done with their meal and returned their trays, Rex grabbed Noah's hand and pressed a soft kiss to the back of his knuckles, eyes boring deep into Noah's.

"Tonight, you are coming with me."

Bobo, who followed behind, rolled his eyes for the umpteen time since Rex's lovey-dovey behavior towards Noah all through dinner. At first, he'd thrown taunting looks in Noah's direction every several minutes since they returned to base from Abysus. Now though, he looked like he'd seen enough sugary venom to last him a lifetime.

"Oh goody," Bobo clapped his hands in dead fashion, "Feel free to make our room your love hotel. I'll be bunking three corridors down so I won't hear all the moaning."

Noah gaped like a fish, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights, too stunned to come a smart comeback to Bobo or make any reply to Rex without stuttering. Noah managed to string a proper sentence when they rounded the corner into the corridor where Rex's room would be at the middle.

"Rex, uh, just stop, am I seriously missing something here?" Noah asked nervously, pulling back and halting in his steps.

"I love you," Rex simply repeated his confession from earlier in the day.

"I'm serious, Rex, don't make me hit you," Noah growled, eyes flashing, ticked off.

Rex had to remind himself though he went on a round trip and back, Noah here just suffered an altercation with him for the last two weeks. It wasn't any wonder Noah was suspicious and confused.

Rex cocked his head slightly, indicating Noah should follow him into the room anyways, as he continued down the hallway. Noah did so, without another protest and once in the room, Rex bade Noah to make himself comfortable, for it was going to be another long story for the night.

 _To be continued..._

* * *

 **Recap/ Footnotes:**

 ***weird play-by-play of your crazy battle:** Referencing exactly from the original cartoon, in the final two episodes when Rex battled with the Consortium in their new EVO forms.

 ***Null Void:** from the original cartoon. In the special Ben-10 and Gen Rex crossover. Caesar sent Alpha into what he thought was the Null Void, but was actually an interdimensional prison.

 ***short tenure years back:** From the original cartoon. When Caesar first reappeared and came to Providence to find Rex. He was always working on some whimsical projects that annoyed White Knight. That tickled me a lot by the way. One of the things I love about Caesar.


	48. Finally, Connected

9000 words of love. Hope you enjoy it.

 **Chapter 48: Finally, Connected**

(The start of something new, and beautiful for our favourite boys)

* * *

Sitting on the couch, facing each other, Noah listened intently.

Joy, relief, sadness, anger, taking turns to run through his face as Rex told him parts about Other-Noah that he never told Main control.

By the end of it, Noah had a look both stunned and incredulous.

"So… long story short, you are in love with my _Other_ me?"

Rex laughed, wondering how Noah's usually quick and smart brain was so slow today. Either that, or Noah's half-joking to not believe in Rex's words.

"No silly, I love _you_. And _I know_ , you love me too."

Noah's breath hitched, back straightening off the back rest, cerulean eyes a washed with intensity.

Rex felt immense relief hearing those words ring out like a closure to a long puzzling riddle he didn't even know he was facing.

It was crazy how Rex never noticed, ain't it?

Noah said before, that *a soulmate would fight beside him no matter what. And Noah even kissed him, conveyed an ocean of feelings into that simple lip peck, only to dismiss it as nothing but a close, 'brotherly' gesture. Yea right, like best friends would ever kiss.

How could Rex have missed all the signs?

Noah had always been there from day one. Certainly, Noah couldn't have feelings for him from the start, but surely, somewhere along the way, his feelings passed the friendship mark, and for Rex it was the same.

He'd been too used to thinking of Noah as his best buddy, that his mind hasn't even tuned in to his feelings, even though his body already had. Getting horny and excited at Noah's closeness, secretly ogling and admiring him, all those should have been dead ringers of his growing attraction.

And if he was honest, he was jealous of all the guys who got to fuck Noah, and it had secretly ate away at him, making him crazy before he understood what it was – that he had fallen in love with his best friend.

Now completely aware of it, there was clarity in his mind. No more weird feelings, or odd gazes, confusion or the infernal agitation gnawing at him.

It was now time, to move pass the friendship mark. And take a new step together into a relationship.

"T-that, I –" Noah was entirely red, stuttering again, at the point of tripping over not knowing how to handle Rex's sudden confession.

Rex chuckled at Noah's clumsiness and shyness, knowing the Blonde was completely taken back and not sure how to proceed.

God knew how long Noah kept his feelings secret. Now Rex just forcefully opened the gates, demanding to free them. He knew Noah's first instinct was probably to run, but Rex wasn't gonna let him.

"Noah," Rex breathed gently, scooting nearer so their thighs pressed together, raising a hand to caress Noah's hot cheek, "Say it's true, it's your turn to tell me how you really feel."

"That's impossible," Noah angled away from Rex's palms, but Rex caught his other cheek with his other hand, holding Noah's face at level with his. Noah averted his gaze instead, eyes dropping.

"This is crazy… we were just… still fighting – and then you disappeared… met this insane guy who looks like me, but acts like a crappy, anal douchebag pining for you. And you think I'm the same as him?"

If Rex lost his guts, or wavered, he might freeze up and fear he made a wrong assumption. But he was more than two hundred percent certain.

"Well, can you deny that you _aren't_ in love with me?"

Noah eyeballed him, a strangled grunt riding up his throat. Rex smirked inwardly, seeing the vexed and complicated emotions swimming inside trembling blue irises.

There was no denying Noah's feelings laid bare despite he apprehension. It was like Noah still had difficulty wrapping his head around what was happening. For all his show of disbelief, Noah has yet to outright deny that he had feelings for him.

And that, give Rex all the confidence he needed.

"This can't be real, you liked Circe – liked girls… I was content to just be by your side."

"In an alternate dimension maybe, but this Rex is yours for the taking," Rex assured him, and Noah flickered his gaze back to meet him, "So what will it be, Noah?"

Noah struggled with another strangled groan and half stood in an attempt to get off the couch, but Rex imprisoned both wrists like handcuffs to him, pulling him back down.

"Rex! C'mon, quit playing around, let me go."

"I can't. I nearly lost you, I'm not gonna let you go again."

"I'm serious, Rex."

"So am I," Rex looked him dead in the eyes, "Why do you not believe me?"

"Well, obviously because your brain must still be somewhere stuck in that alternate plane! You don't just come back and suddenly… confess like that!"

Rex laughed lightly. Noah was sure being stubborn.

"So you're mad that you didn't confess first?"

Noah glared at him, then fluttered to a quick close as Rex dived in to press their lips together, pressing him backwards into the couch.

A frustrated groan escaped Noah, hands weakly pushing back Rex's shoulders, yet his fingers bunched his jacket, a conflicting push and pull that only made Rex more determined to get through the hurdle.

"Rex, god, please…" a winded plea fell from Noah's lips, "Stop playing…"

Rex pulled back, and eyed Noah critically.

"I'm not. I swear."

He braced a palm flat on the back rest, and the other, took Noah's palms and held it against his chest over where his heart was.

"Can you hear this? My heart is racing."

Noah's eyebrows jumped, iris quaking, even his jaw line shivered.

"Racing for you, Noah. Believe me."

"You're making a mistake," Noah contested in a weak voice, tight and tiny.

"My only mistake, was that I haven't done this sooner," Rex said with a finality to his tone. Then bowed his head over Noah for another kiss, soft and wanting.

He felt Noah shudder again, harder this time, breaths coming in rapidly, mirroring his own.

Noah's lips moved, melding against his grooves, sweet pluckering sounds licking Rex's ears and making him blush.

It felt so good, kissing Noah – Rex recognized the trembles that ran through his nerves, and the breaths hitching in his own throat. He felt like this everytime their lips touched – no matter how 'innocent' their lip pecks appeared to be.

Now Rex could sink into Noah's lips finally understanding the meaning behind these sensations.

He was in love with his best friend.

Rex laughed lightly against Noah's lips, pulling away abit so he could look into those glimmering, blue orbs that looked caught in between disbelief and elation.

"I can't believe it took me this long to realize," Rex admitted softly.

Noah's lids jumped abit, widening.

"Are you serious, Rex? Is this for real? You really…"

Noah trailed off, nibbling his lips, until Rex placed another chaste kiss on them.

"I believe I already said it," Rex whispered, cupping Noah's jaw gently, " _I love you_."

Noah swallowed, hard, adam's apple bobbing up and down slowly.

His lids lowered, eyes becoming wet and lucid beneath them, causing Rex's chest and loins to tighten.

Noah raised a slow hand to Rex's face, fingers trembling faintly.

"Is this really real?" Noah's words came out in a shaky breath, eyes large in wonder and disbelief. "Can I really have you?"

Rex laughed lightly into Noah's palms before pressing a light kiss.

"Yes Noah, I'm yours."

Noah's breath hitched, overwhelmed with emotions, eyes swimming all over Rex, studying him intently. Carefully, he ran fleeting fingers all over the sides of Rex's face and neck, so tenderly, and agonizingly hesitant, as if still afraid Rex would pull back from him and this would all be just a dream.

Rex mused to himself how easy it was for Noah to kiss him pretending that it meant nothing and Rex was none the wiser. Now, by contrast, feelings exposed, Noah treated him like he was so precious. Rex's heart churned achingly sweet. He knew no one was going to love him more than Noah does. And it was now Rex's turn to show him it was the same for him.

Rex tugged Noah's arms towards him, pressing their lips together in a light kiss. Such simple, chaste kiss, was more than enough to make his heart hum in his chest, and his toes curl in jubilant anticipation. Nary five seconds, Noah pulled back slightly, already panting for air.

Rex curled his arms around Noah, gently nudging Noah's head back towards him, continuing to plant furtive kisses on his lips, then along his jaw, and all over his cheeks and forehead, then downwards along his neck. Noah's breath was tight, hitching, and from the tempo and sharpness, Rex could guess which points gave Noah more pleasure.

He drew his teeth along the side of Noah's neck, pressing and chewing lightly, interchanging it with slow licks of his tongue. Rex could feel vibrations within Noah's throat, sweet sounds trapped within from Noah biting his lips, then his fingers. It drew an adoring laugh from Rex, who pulled back abit to regard Noah. Flushed, and trembling, brows angled downwards slightly in an aroused manner, lids squeezed shut as if the light ministrations were unbearable.

Rex was instantly hooked, having not seen such a shy, bashful side of Noah before. A drunk and lustful Noah he had seen, and a flirty, pretentious one (for the sake of a mission) at the club. Rex licked his lips in anticipation, eager to see more sides of Noah that he hadn't yet seen.

"Noah," Rex called, tone almost low like a growl, "Let me fuck you."

Noah's lids flew open that instant, eyes widening.

"W-what?" Noah looked like he was still struggling to comprehend Rex's words.

"You heard me."

"b-But I, I mean, a-are you sure?" Noah half stuttered, "You know I'm a – "

" _Noah_ ," Rex stopped him with a finality to his tone that adequately portrayed his meaning and determination.

Noah's jaw tightened, swallowing hard, cerulean pupils dilating under lids that fell in a half droop. _Fuck_ , it was so arousing, Rex felt his cock strain painfully within his pants.

Noah gave a small nod, relenting. "Let's get to the bed."

That single line does it.

Hearing it, flipped Rex from tender to beast mode. He hauled Noah roughly up with him to their feet, crushing their mouths together. Noah gasped against his lips, giving Rex entrance to plunder his mouth. Rex could feel the vibrations of Noah's moan against his tongue, echoing within that hot cavern. The sound was overtly loud to Rex's ears, like hypnotic drums vibrating his nerves all the way down to his cock, rousing it to become impossibly harder.

Fanatic, Rex crawled at Noah's black turtleneck, sudden clumsy fingers unable to get a good grip on the stretchy, slippery knit material. Rex growled in frustration, wanting nothing more than to press their bodies together. He could probably rip the tee right along the seams, but he was sure Noah wouldn't appreciate it, plus it would be pretty embarrassing trying to explain it when they go requisite a new piece from the laundry.

Hence, Rex slowed abit in order to grab a proper fistful of the fabric to pull it over Noah's head. Then he tossed it anyhow on the floor. His orange jacket joined it, Rex shrugging it off impatiently, body insanely hot and needing reprieve of the thick fabric.

They'd somehow made it to the bed, not realizing till they bumped the edge and Noah fell back on it, yelping abit in shock. Rex stared down at the blonde, shirtless on his bed, face and chest flushed rosy red, hair already mussed up, one knee slightly bent and the other splayed.

 _Oh god!_ Rex's mind was spinning in overdrive. _Noah_ , in _his_ bed – _finally_ , at long last!

"Fuck!" Rex cursed, hands diving to his cock and kneading it brutally, face flaming from both excitement and shame.

"Fuck I'm _so har_ d!"

Noah's eyes widened again, glancing down to his crotch, as if suddenly noticing the enormous bulge inside his pants. Noah stared a while, then drew his gaze back up to meet Rex, pink tongue drawing out slowly over his lips.

Rex swallowed, reading Noah's intention clearly, just as Noah bent forward to plant both knees on the bed, shuffling towards him slowly.

"Oh fuck!" Rex growled again, undoing his own zipper impatiently and pushing pants down his hips, going mad with eagerness at what was to come.

There was no pause, no doubts, absolutely no hesitation or shyness at all over what was transpiring between them. Despite just crossing the thresholds from friend to lovers, they shot over the fence like two wild stallions finally free to their inner natures, and desires.

Especially for Rex, who had too long a damning and trying time battling the Other-Noah, and coming to a bitter ache of realizing that in some painful alternate universe, they weren't meant to be together.

It made Rex all the more desperate now, to treasure this very moment they had, to seize the Noah he had now in his arms, in his heart, and take him right in this very bed.

Rex pulled his briefs downwards when Noah's fingers reached the stretchy band.

Rex cursed and let Noah take over, curling one arm over Noah's shoulders whilst the other snaked into his soft, golden hair.

Noah pulled down Rex's undies in one deft movement, pushing it together with Rex's pants down further till his mid-thigh. Then he gingerly lifted Rex's tee that had blanketed his cock and formed a protruding tent, unveiling the hard and throbbing organ pointing forty-five degrees at the ceiling.

Noah swallowed, hard, hooking the tee over Rex's engorged shaft and sliding the hem against the base. Rex sucked in his breath at those ministrations, pleasure already shuddering through him from those light brushes.

"Noah!" an impatient keel escaped Rex's lips. He was going to die if he had to wait any longer.

Then he felt Noah's moist, supple lips touch the tip of his cock, grooves opening and rolling over the slick head. Every nerve ending was firing behind Rex's eyes, making him squeeze them tightly shut in the pleasurable sensation. He groaned, long and deep, as Noah went in further, so hot and wet, slipping over his shaft inch by inch.

It took every ounce of restraint he had to hold back his hips, when all he wanted was fuck Noah's mouth wildly.

The visage was so insanely sexy, and incredibly pleasurable. Nothing like Rex had ever known.

If someone had told Rex over six years ago, when they met at the vending machine, that one day he would wind up with his cock in his best friend's mouth, then Rex would have just taken Noah up against the soda machine right there and then, underaged restrictions be damned.

Never even in the Alternate-plane did Rex imagine he would have a chance with Noah like this.

Seeing his best friend swallow over half his cock, till Rex's tip hit the back of his throat. He massaged the remaining portions of Rex's cock expertly, adding to the pressure pooling within his nether.

Rex's spine stretched taut from his nape to his tail bone, assaulted from the pressure pulling at every nerve. His breaths became erratic, cursing and gasping in between long, drawn out groans of pleasure. His lids fluttered close every several seconds against the aching tension, but he forced them open so he could see Noah sucking him off. The visage was equally stimulating as the action itself, seeing his blonde head bob up and down his cock at a steady pace, hair flopping.

"Oh Noah…" Rex brushed Noah's fringe back, then moved down to his ears and neck, caressing his hot skin.

He felt vibrations hum around his cock as Noah moaned in appreciation. So Rex continued to caress Noah's neck and shoulders, kneading the muscles and rubbing his heated palms as far down Noah's back as he could reach.

He bowed over Noah's shoulders when he felt the pressure tightening, nearing his end, hands burying in Noah's hair, and wildly running all over Noah's back, fingers digging into his flesh. Noah sensed it too, quickening the pace, mouth sliding up and down his cock faster, lips slick and hot over his cock.

Rex panted harder, breaths coming in short and hard, sharp grunts escaping his lips, as embarrassing as the slurping sound of Noah sucking his dick. Rex hadn't expected such pleasure, didn't know it could exist, and was shocked that how he sunk into this pleasure so shamelessly. Even his hips were nearly out of control, jerking inches into Noah's mouth, aching to get deeper, and for the motion to be faster.

Rex felt his dick welling up, something thick and hot collecting within his testes and flushed up to the base of his cock. Like molten lava blazing a heated trail through his urethra, charging along his dick, and he realized he was gonna cum.

"Shit! I-I coming!" Rex shouts a warning, hands flying from Noah's head to his shoulders, fingers digging into his collar bone as he cummed, white haze filling his head, body overcome with spasms wrecking him.

Thick, white stickiness shot out the slit of his over-sensitive tip like white fire spilling out a volcano, pouring straight into Noah's mouth.

It was the most shocking thing, when Noah didn't pull away, instead, left his mouth wide agape, giving Rex the startling, perfect view of his semen splurting into Noah's red and raw, swollen tongue.

Rex made a keening sound at the back of his throat as his groans fought with his pants. He dived down for Noah's lips, bracing a knee on the edge of the bed for better support, and tasted himself through swallowing Noah's mouth. Their saliva mixed with his cum, mixed with their gasping pants that came out sounding chortled with the thick fluid following between them. Thick trails escaped their messy, sloopy kisses, trickling down their chins and dripping onto the rest of the body.

Rex was still in incredible high, despite just coming, his groin still tight and throbbing with unfinished pleasure. When they finally broke away, Rex took a bit of time to appreciate Noah's incredibly erotic face, cheeks flamed red, lips swollen and sensuous, with a half lidded gaze of satisfaction and pride.

"Was it good?" Noah asked tentatively, prompting Rex to smile approvingly.

"It was better than good."

So much such that Rex worried if he was capable enough to return the pleasure. "Now it's your turn, to lay back and enjoy."

Rex pulled his pants the rest of the way down, kicking it off before he pressed Noah down in into the bed, climbing onto the bed and laying his weight on his knees and elbows. Noah however, nibbled his lips, suddenly looking uncertain.

"Hmmm, maybe we should leave that for another time… I can get off myself."

Rex gave a disgruntled chortle.

"You don't take me for a selfish lover now, do you?"

He leaned back, sitting on his ankles to strip off his tee that was soaked wet with his sweat. Noah pushed himself on his elbow and followed Rex's movement with his eyes, admiration shining within his blue orbs, making Rex feel suddenly self-conscious.

"Holy shit," Noah suddenly breathed, staring at Rex's groin, "You are still so big."

Rex glanced down at himself and blushed abit. "Yea, gotta a problem with that?"

Noah sat up, straightening, leaning forwards to reach for Rex's still erect dick, but Rex caught his fingers and kissed them.

"You first." Rex released Noah's hand and splayed his hand over Noah's front fly. The bulge there was big, and Rex felt a little bad he made Noah strain with it whilst he came first. Rex swallowed hard, mind racing a zillion miles per second at what to do, at what he should do.

Tracing tentative fingers over Noah's button, he released the closure, causing Noah's breath to hitch abit, excitement evident in Noah's face. Then Rex pulled the zip, and tugged at his pants, pulling it down. His ears burned at the sound of the metal teeth unlacing, fingers trembling abit at his action.

There was no more turning back. He was definitely entering uncharted territory now. Oddly enough, though nervous, Rex felt no hesitation. Didn't matter one bit that Noah was wholly male, and that he was mucking around in bed with a man. Didn't matter that right before that point, Rex had only lain with women.

The fact that Rex managed to get hard with Noah was proof in the pudding that Rex desired him, gender be damned.

The only thought that troubled him was his lack of experience pleasuring another man. No matter, this wasn't a one-time fling, but a lifetime of continuous experience that Rex knew he would delve in, so there would be plenty of time to learn how to pleasure his best friend – now turned lover.

For now, Rex's tentative motions were laced with impatience, eager, excited and desperate for more.

His impatience reflected in Noah, who shifted his weight to his upper back, pushing his hips off the bed to help Rex get his pants off.

Rex deliberately slowed, suddenly wanting to savor this moment. To admire this naked flesh that had teased him so maddeningly many times, without Rex realizing how hungry he actually was, for it. To come to think of it, Rex often ogled at Noah whenever he changed in front of him, eyes wandering all over, lingering at places far longer than considered healthy and normal by 'best friends' standards.

Now though, Rex could finally enjoy it openly.

Slowly, bit by bit, he pushed the thick fabric lower, enjoying the enticing view of Noah's snow white skin unveiling. Noah was so beautiful, fair skin a sharp contrast to Providence uniform, looking milky soft, yet Rex traced firm muscles under supple skin, leaving him hungry.

Rex shuffled back as he stripped Noah off his pants, crouching down to taste Noah's sexy thigh muscles. Noah arched off the bed, silent pants escaping his lips. Rex's gaze swam all over Noah, not able to decide which was hotter – Noah's floorboard abs gracing his torso that moved in an erotic, undulating dance, or his thighs that trembled against Rex's hungry touches.

Rex opted for both, kissing and nibbling from Noah's thigh, moving upwards to his abdomen, eliciting tiny mews of pleasure and rapid pants, every sound dropping right down his dick like a sick, carnal drum. Rex planted his touch at every inch of Noah's skin like he was Rex's ballroom to traverse.

Noah has his arms covering his face, like a shy flower shielding itself from the decadent salsa Rex was doing with his mouth and his hands. It further enflamed the passionate fire roaring inside Rex, urging him to move faster, harder, chewing and sucking Noah's delectable flesh and make a riot on his body.

Rex licked his lips, unbidding, lewd lips coming up his throat.

"You like this, Noah?"

Noah answered with a moan he failed to bite back.

"Where else feels good? Tell me, Noah." Rex wanted to make this as equally pleasurable for him, rather than just focus on himself.

"E-everywhere, Rex," came Noah's breathless reply, spurring Rex on, giving him more confidence with what he was doing.

He marveled at his own lewdness that bordered on ferocity, never imagining he could act this way towards anyone, and much less towards the man he'd thought of his whole life as his best friend. At the back of his mind, he mused regretfully that he hadn't done this sooner.

Wanting to see Noah's aroused expressions, Rex paused for awhile to pull apart Noah's arms, prompting a startled gasps. The face glazed over with wanton lust and bashful awe, was the perfect incarnate of Aphrodite's nymph.

Noah rolled his hips, calling Rex to attention to his achingly hard cock, freeing his arms from Rex's hands and fondled with his own shaft, panting breathlessly and moaning Rex's name like a begging plea.

Rex stopped delaying. He grabbed hold of Noah's rock hard cock, intertwining with Noah's fingers, earning a strangled howl from the blonde. Rex marveled at the throbbing veins he felt along Noah's dick and was reminded a man derived the most pleasure from having their cocks stimulated.

Rex licked his lips, nervous – for he had never pleasured another guy – but eager to continue. He decided to stick to using his hands for now, more confident that he could bring Noah to his release since he knew how to get himself off with his own hands.

Noah convulsed like electricity racing through him, drawing a satisfied smirk from Rex. Noah moaned loudly, finally, no longer held back by his reserved side. Their hands melded together as they pumped Noah's engorged flesh, keeping to the same rhythm like they were of the same mind. Rex swallowed hard, loving Noah's hips jutting off the bed in frenzy and the ecstasy cast on his face.

Rex knew that he was going spend many months wanking off to this enticing visage.

Noah had his knees bent, and placed his feet flat on the bed to facilitate his upward thrusts, faster and harder, until his hips were literally flying off the bed. It gave Rex an eyeful of his two globes, flexing and clenching erotically. And that was when Rex realized Noah had a finger there, right between his butt cheeks. Rex gaped in stupor, watching Noah's third finger disappear in and out his twin moons, explicitly suggesting it had disappeared _into an orifice_.

Rex's gut pulled, whilst saliva pooled behind his jaw. Though Rex had no experience having sex with another guy, he was not so daft as to not know how it went.

His body throbbed, so hard that Rex shook like jelly, insides a washed with further excitement at the thought that Rex might experience what it's like to be _inside_ Noah. One of the many things that secretly pestered him for months, like dark wisps at the fringes of his mind, festering like a green eyed monster at all the lucky bastards who got a taste of Noah's rear end.

How Noah fucked, or how Noah gets fucked – Rex didn't have to ponder any more. Finally, he would find out, and so help him, he was adamant he'd make it such that he would be the last man who ever got into Noah's back.

The thought nearly sent Rex over the edge, nearly snapping and losing all vestiges of control. He roughly pushed Noah's thigh upwards and apart, earning a startled shout from Noah. There, Rex zoomed in on that pinkish orifice that puckered invitingly like a starving flesh searching for something to suck on. Rex felt his head reel from the tantalizing sight, finger diving in before he could help himself, pushing inwards next to Noah's other finger that was still stuck up his ass.

"A-ahh!" Noah shouted, jerking violently, back arching forwards into a curl as he caught Rex's wrist from under his thigh. "Rex, no!"

Despite his protest, his anus was greedily latching onto Rex's finger that wasn't even halfway in.

"Noah, please," Rex groaned pleadingly, hardly able to hold on to his senses with the filthy, obscene desires escalating within him. "Let me fuck you."

Rex slid his finger all the way in without waiting for Noah's reply, straining in between the tight passage of Noah's ass and his other finger, earning a strangled mew from Noah.

Noah panted hard, eyes locking with Rex for several intense seconds. Then he nodded, and pulled himself off Rex's probing finger and scooted back further into the bed, beckoning Rex to follow. Then he pushed Rex down into the bed, and climbed atop him into a kneeling position, thighs astride Rex's hips, hard cocks bumping together.

Noah then licks his own fingers, tongue darting in between and around them like a seductive nymph. Rex stared, hypnotized, licking his lips hungrily, torn between wanting to suck on Noah's digits himself yet wanting to continue watching the naughty show.

Finally, Noah stuffed his saliva-slicked fingers up his ass, drawing them in and out quickly, fucking himself with his head thrown back in ecstasy. Rex sucked in his breath at such an intensely, erotic sight. His cock was already twitching like a live eel and spurting a bit of cum even though he hadn't touch himself since cumming earlier on.

While Noah fucked himself with his hand, Rex returned attention to the blonde's front, showering some love on his blushing cock. Noah's cock was also weeping thin trickles of pre-cum, as if he has so much building itself that it was over spilling. Rex rubbed the wet tip, grinning when Noah sucked in a sharp breath when he thumbed over the slit.

Noah continued to moan encouragingly, Rex's name spilling in between several throaty groans, as Rex fisted Noah's shaft, rubbing up and down firmly with loving squeezes every few seconds.

Rex's ears totally burned, turned on hearing Noah moaning his name.

"Do you, have any lube?" Rex rasped out, suddenly remembering, "Because I don't have any."

Noah shook his head. "Me neither, wasn't preparing for this happening."

Noah gave a shy smile, then licked his lips.

"It's probably okay though, your dick is already wet with your cum."

Rex licked his lips. He could hardly wait to slide in.

Noah panted so hard, hips rocking and jerking towards the ministration going on at his front by Rex's hand, and his ass by his own hand. Rex was getting impatient, already so turned on by the deviant sight, but he forced himself to wait till Noah gave the okay.

Finally, Noah, pulled his fingers out his ass, giving Rex the impression it was his turn next.

 _Oh yes,_ Rex could cry, trembling with unabashed eagerness, winding his arms round Noah's hips as the blonde scooted so that Rex's cock was brushing his entrance.

However, before Rex could feel magic, Noah suddenly looked him dead in the eye.

"Close your eyes, Rex."

"What? Why?" Rex was immediately confused, pulled out of his reverie by Noah's sudden hesitation, when they've already done so many embarrassing things this night.

"Because," Noah said with a tinge of uncertainty, "If you notice, this is going to be _different_ from how you did it with Circe."

Rex gave him an annoyed stare.

"Of course I know that –I never did it with Circe through her ass. And god damn it! Why are you bringing her up at a time like this!" Rex was appalled, feeling himself going soft a teeny bit.

Noah worried his lower lips, looking apologetic.

"I'm sorry, it's just, I can't believe this is happening," Noah explained shakily, "I mean, last time I checked, you fucked women, Rex."

Rex could swear he was going to go limp, so he grabbed Noah's ass and gave it a loving squeeze to keep his manhood excited.

 _Damn!_ Noah sure had a firm tush.

Noah gasped in between a moan, head thrown back abit, before continuing breathily, "You've never done it with a guy. And if we do it and you become grossed out by it, or _go limp_ , I'm going die, Rex."

Rex gritted his teeth and smacked Noah's ass, eliciting a throaty gasps that travelled all the way to his cock, causing his hips to jerk upwards involuntarily, hitting Noah's anus without entering.

Rex cursed under his breath, his dick was growing painful, impatient.

"Noah, I'm the one who is going to die if we don't do something about my boner. Listen to me!" He grabbed Noah's face, " _I want you, Noah Nixon_ –want to fuck you senseless, until you cannot walk, until I pass out, until you get it in your thick skull that my cock wants you. Now _please_ , Noah, let me enter you."

And finally, _oh sweet heavens_ , Noah lowered his ass over his aching rod, tight rim of muscles pushed apart and sinking over his throbbing hot rod, taking Rex all the way to the hilt.

Rex yelled every curse he knew, on how fucking incredible it was. Noah was so, _so_ tight, insides hot and slick, sucking his cock with a pressure that was unbelievable.

Noah moaned in shaky pleasure, head thrown back, chest arching forwards, eyes rolling back in ecstasy. Rex snaked his arms around the delectable being, enthralled by Noah's erotic response. Noah used his leg muscles to pull up and push back down on Rex's hip, gingerly and agonizingly slowly at first. Then his pace quickened, strength also intensifying, slamming down so hard against Rex's groin that their flesh slapped each other loudly.

"Oh fuck, Rex! Rex! Ngh-" Noah panted aloud, losing all his inhibitions, eliciting Rex to mirror his chants with Noah's name.

"So good, Noah, hah-so tight, Noah!"

At first restraining some resemblance of consideration, Rex now abandoned them all, thrusting upwards to meet Noah halfway, wrangling an incomprehensible shout from Noah. There was no more control, just a maddening desire to reach his completion, spawned from this sweet, demonic connection.

It was as if he was spelled by an incubus that was Noah, cock addicted to the depraving spell cast upon it, lustfully seeking Noah's cavern like a homing missile. Each time that Noah pulled out of Rex's shaft, he'd thrust his hips upwards, ramming his wicked sword into Noah's tight sheath.

"Oh god, Rex! Hah- hah – fuck yes! So hard, Rex, so fast!" Noah screamed, tone hoarse and strangled as if he was wound so tight with insane pleasure, he was going to snap like rubber hand pulled taut.

It emboldened Rex, or rather, drove him crazier, jumping up to press Noah into the bed, switching their positions so that Rex was now over him. Whilst shifting positions, Rex was still seated into Noah, causing a delicious burn along the skin of his cock, which he was sure could be felt by Noah as well. Noah groaned and yelped throatily during Rex's repositioning, after which he showed his appreciation by wrapping his legs around Rex's hips, digging his heels into Rex's ass, pushing him impossible deeper.

Rex cursed aloud, grunting at the same time, sweeping rough hands underneath Noah's firm thighs that were flushed against his hipbone. He dug his fingers into Noah's flesh to grab a firm support so he could borrow deeper and faster into that glorious rut.

Faster, harder Rex went, edged on by Noah's ever fanatic shouts that gave him indications that Noah was reaching his climax. Rex himself was unraveling, but he dampened the pressure brewing at his cock just a bit, holding back with the willpower of a god so that he could come together with Noah.

But god damn it, was so hard to delay his climax when Noah was a seductive creature writhing and jutting upwards from the force of Rex's thrust. Rex found Noah to be achingly beautiful, with creamy white spread thighs, crimson shaft bouncing about wildly like an electric eel, and a slim, sculptured torso expanding and contracting alluringly with his erratic breathing.

Finally, Noah came. He jolted sharply off the bed and freezed in an arc for several seconds, riding out the shudders of his high. Noah's inner passage spasmed fiercely, and since his hot flesh enfolded Rex's cock within, it mercilessly squeezed and jerked Rex's cock until he hit his climax too, nary a few seconds later.

Spent, and done riding out the wave of his euphoria, Noah relaxed onto the bed, body still pounding hard from the exercise.

Rex on the other hand, was still drawn tight like a coiled spring. Though he pulled out from Noah, copious amounts of his semen was still gushing outwards in spurts, body still trembling and cock still savagely hard. For some reason, Rex couldn't find reprieve, even though he had already cummed so hard _twice_.

It took a little while for Noah to notice, as he laid on the bed with eyes closed in satisfaction, a lazy content smile on his face. When Noah next opened them, his peaceful expression was quickly marred with a startled frown, staring at Rex's still lively manhood.

They stared at one another, both suddenly caught in a spell of shock, until Rex broke it first.

"I-I'm sorry, but I can't," Rex rasped out weakly, shamefully squeezing the head of his cock, "I can't stop, I'm still horny, Noah."

Noah licked his lips, becoming breathless again, surprised light in his pupils darkening hungrily.

"That's alright, I'm here, all night," Noah splayed his hand against his reddened, puckering anus, dallying with Rex's thick cum that clung to his skin, making Noah's groin all sticky and messy.

"You can come into me again," Noah said seductively, one hand spreading an ass check, the other pressing fingers into his anus in meaning.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rex woke first, sleepy eyes finding Noah's golden hair tickling his nose. The curtains were half drawn, allowing light to spill in, telling Rex it was mid-morning. He was surprised Noah was still asleep, being the early riser he was. It shouldn't come as any surprise, since they busied themselves with bed sport till the wee hours of the night.

Rex lazily twined fingers into Noah's silky strands, taking afew moments to establish the fact that last night was real.

He could feel his dried cum clinging to his skin, evidence of how many times he cummed last night. He could still feel lingering warmth of Noah's wanton, tantalizing flesh searing against his skin.

He'd no idea how many times they did it, only that Rex was burning like the devil incarnate, wrapping them up in flames, locked in throes of passion. They fucked over and over, with their mouths and hands and the mouth nestled between Noah's ass. Rex blushed on remembering, images appearing incredibly obscene now that he was recalling it.

After musing to himself for awhile, he scooted lower, bringing his face at level with Noah so that he could admire his sleeping face. _God,_ he was so beautiful, face pearly like an angel, long lashes dusting his cheeks, lips with a perfectly kissable cupid's bow. After watching awhile, Rex couldn't resist planting a light peck onto Noah's lips.

Then he heard Noah making a small sound at the back of his throat. He pulled back to find Noah with sleepy, opened eyes, a haughty smile bracing his lips.

"Attacking me in my sleep? Was last night not enough for you?"

Rex grinned sheepishly, dipping in to press another chaste kiss.

"It can never be enough."

Noah blushed, cheeks quickly reddening, smile faltered as he grunted abit.

"I still can't believe it."

Rex grinned. "That we fucked?"

A dazed look came to Noah's face.

"Yea, that was unbelievable," A soft smile spread on his face, gaze becoming glassy, then his serious look returned. "But no, I meant your story, about going into the future of another dimension."

"You don't believe my words? You think that I can make up such a dramatic, detailed story out of thin air?"

"Well no, I trust you. But I can't believe what I turned into. I mean, I was such an asshole," Noah pointed out in chagrin.

"Not so much, you saved me and helped me get home in the end."

"Yea, but the Other-me was a harsh pleaser."

Well, it shocked Rex too, not realizing that Noah could have such a cold side to him. But then again, before the space-time warp happened, Noah had punched him, _twice_ , given him cold shoulders and basically threw jealous fits of tantrum at him.

Rex couldn't help but feel an internal shiver run through him. It took Rex's quitting Providence and marrying Other-Circe to unleash that beasty side of 'Noah'. But that also meant Noah carried a torrent of possessive, deep passion for him. He felt strangely gleeful that Noah harbored that deep, dark passion hidden inside, and shivered to know if he would see that tough, willful, and domineering side of Noah again.

"You are not so easy to figure out yourself," Rex reminded, "You threw a jealous fit, remember? Because of Nathan."

Noah flushed and looked suitably chastised. Rex grinned watching him vex over it.

"Then, are we more alike than different?" Noah asked hesitantly.

Rex took a deep breath and a thoughtful, quiet moment, getting up into a sitting position. He hugged his knees to his chest before relating what he felt. They were different from the outset, but then again, they shared a common history, nearly exact, before it veered off from the middle of Noah's college years. Rex leaving Providence made Noah crack and hard. The marriage to Circe probably made it worse.

But even though Rex quit, Noah still went on and enlisted into Providence, and he kept his old number, providing a life line not just to 'Rex', but to Other-Crice as well, showing underneath that brusque exterior, was a man with a heart of goal. Both Noahs shared the same sense of desire to help people, and despite his hurt, he still cared a lot for 'Rex' and his friends.

"Wow, I had no idea I was that obsessed about… Providence," Noah joked when Rex was done.

Rex laughed and tackled him, "You mean me."

Noah yelped and fought the fingers digging into his sides, becoming breathless quickly.

"Give me a break, I'm still recovering from being fucking over by a missile."

Rex obliged quickly and gave a look of concern.

"Are you okay? Was I too rough?"

When Noah didn't immediately reply, Rex panicked. He curled over Noah, hands cupping his arm.

"Noah, seriously, how's your asshole? Did I hurt –"

"Don't say that so crudely!" Noah cut him off, cheeks reddening, shrugging him off. "And I'm fine, I just need a bath."

Saying that, Noah sat up in a slow roll, making tiny grunts at the back of his throat, looking like someone just getting out of bed after being bedridden for weeks. By the time he woodenly swung his legs over the bed, Rex had stood before him, and bowed over to scoop Noah into his arms, princess style.

"Hey! What's this?" Noah seemed to catch up to Rex's behaviour, and was objecting it. "Look, put me down, I already told you, I'm okay."

"Don't get pissy, this is just post-sex service, alright? Just relax and let me take care of you," Rex flashed Noah a teasing smile.

Noah rolled his eyes. "I'm not some patient, Rex."

Rex didn't listen to him, and Noah realized he was serious when they exited the room.

"Holy fuck Rex! What if someone comes by!" Noah was absolutely horrified, so Rex quickened his pace, half jogging with Noah within his arms.

Well, Rex had no desire to have someone see them in such an obvious half-naked state of after-sex. On hindsight, he really should have at least dressed themselves first.

Oh well, they were already out the room, so Rex hurried over the shower, praying no one chose to pop out their rooms or enter the corridor that minute.

Noah didn't struggle, letting Rex take him there quickly.

"Phew, see, no one saw us," Rex heaved a sigh and let Noah down when they reached the empty shower.

Noah gave Rex a critical glare like he didn't have brains.

"Yea, no one except the guys in security watch."

 _Oh fuck_ – how could Rex forget? The security cameras were in the bloody corridor!

Rex grimaced.

"Well, free show, I guess. Doesn't hurt to show our sexiness once in a while."

"Really now? You thinking to add to your resume, Mr. Porn Actor?" Noah dropped incredulous tones, words sarcastic, head shaking.

Noah hobbled over to one of the cubicles, entering.

"If I get called in for bad moral conduct, I'm putting the blame on you," Noah added abit gruffly.

Rex gave a wry smile, entering behind him.

"Yea, yea, I'll take responsibility," Rex stretched a hand and covered Noah's over the shower tap, whilst the other hand combed Noah's backside and threaded down his valley.

Noah sucked in his breath, free hand reaching round his back to catch Rex's wrist.

"Rex," Noah half-growled warningly, already catching onto Rex's double meaning, "I'm just here for a shower, seriously. I'll take care of my own ass, thank you very much."

Rex chuckled at Noah's sudden gruffness and one-eighty behavior compared to his wanton, lewd self the night before.

Rex could tell it was just embarrassment talking after the lust have cleared, as Noah's cheeks and ears were totally red, and he could feel his pulse racing, adrenaline spiking.

Rex was undeterred, lightly fighting Noah's arms and weak protests until the blonde finally gave up and gave Rex reins over his body.

Rex smirked, knowing Noah was shy since it was the first for Rex to show him such tenderness.

Well, Rex was a little embarrassed himself, running the soapy soft sponge over Noah, taking care to wipe every groove and cleft of his body, cleaning him from the messy aftermath of yesterday's workout.

Rex pointedly ignored his morning wood, mindful of Noah's wellbeing after their heavy bout of sex. Rex's nanite enhanced body may bless him with rejuvenation, but he was sure a normal human would be worn out. He was sort of surprised even, that Noah was still able to stand, albeit with an odd posture, favoring to hunch a bit. And Noah kept shifting his weight from hip to hip, cues that pointed to him suffering from exhaustion and ache.

 _Damn!_ Rex felt a little guilty, wondering if he had been too rough or if his stamina was abit too much for Noah. However, Rex didn't regret what they did together. He just vowed to make it up to Noah till his muscles recover.

Noah gave a half grumble against Rex trying to clean the deep valley between his ass cheeks. Rex kissed him to silence him, and got no further struggle, so he hummed contentedly, taking slow, precious moments to get Noah all cleaned. Finally done, they both sighed contentedly, and shared a sweet kiss that smoothed over Rex like warm, gentle rays on his skin after rain. He dried them carefully with towels that were kept in the shared cabinet. As for clothes, since the shower room on this floor wasn't next to laundry requisite, they had no clean clothes to draw from. Instead, they wrapped towels around their hips but before Noah could run back to their room, Rex picked him up again, surprising Noah who yelped.

Rex laughed openly, ignoring Noah who cursed under his breath. Rex found he got over the fact that others could see them from security cam. Not like they were fucking in the corridor anyway. They were just topless. And being a teeny weensy lovely-dovey. It was no biggie.

Rex could care less about the aftermath of gossips or taunts that would spread like wild fire. Besides, he was pretty sure he would have support from most of Providence staff anyway.

Once back into the room, Rex deposited Noah on the couch. Noah shifted abit, making himself comfortable, bringing up both legs slowly and laid on his side. Whilst Noah was getting into Cleopatra position, Rex gave a pointed glance at his bed.

"I'll need to change the sheets," Rex noted aloud, blushing slightly.

Noah grunted. "Yea, since you were like a fire hydrant without an off switch."

His blonde eyebrows jumped.

"Is that like some kind of Nanite or Omega-1 thing?" Noah sounded slightly incredulous, "Like seriously, dude, do you cum like four, five times in a row when you wanked yourself?"

Rex shrugged, smirk twitching at the corner of his lips.

"No, it's just a Noah thing."

He bent down to kiss away the corners of Noah's furrowed brow.

"Hmmm, a _Noah_ thing…" Noah hummed, sounding rather pleased. "So, it was good?"

"It was an _artful_ experience," Rex said, wearing a look that prompted Noah to laugh.

Then it was Rex's turn to ask. "How about me? Was _I_ good?"

"Hmmm…" Noah hummed again, secretively smile toying with Rex.

Rex plonked down at the edge of the coach. "C'mon Noah, be honest. I can take it."

"Well, it depends," Noah was deliberately taunting him, eyes glittering mischievously.

"What do you mean, _it depends_?" Rex gave a cry. Hell, if he'd been bad in bed, he wanted to know. It will hurt his pride sure, but Rex was convinced he'll eventually master all the 101 ways to pleasure Noah.

"Well, it depends on how well the after-sex care is," Noah answered, lips curled up haughtily.

Rex got up to his feet instantly.

"Alright then, one-brunch in bed, coming right up."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Noah finally went down to the canteen when it was nearing dinnertime. He was already hungry, even though Rex fed him almost every two hours. He must have expended more energy last night than he thought.

And hell, even though it has been a _long_ time since he has had sex, last night was nothing like he could have expected. Rex wasn't that insatiable or passionate in his fantasies. Noah was sure his regimental training kept him in tip top fitness, enabling him to withstand Rex's inhuman fucking. Anyone else might be bedridden for at least three days.

Noah was down early, and also so that he could avoid bumping into Delta. He had the foresight that by now, the news of Rex's brazen display of passion right in the middle of their mission, had spread across most of Providence like wildfire. And he was dead certain he wouldn't hear the end of it from Delta.

To add to that, it was sacrilegious for him to skip breakfast with them when he was within Providence grounds. Even if today was coincidently his rest day, Delta made it a point to start their early mornings together if they could.

Fate however, was intent on embarrassing him. Delta was already at their usual bench, about a third present. They were on him like vultures the moment he appeared, necks and heads craned to his direction, beady, smirking looks thrown at him. He felt he would look more foolish trying to avoid their table and take the long way around. Hence, he steeled himself, forcing his head high, trying to walk like he didn't still feel Rex's stick up his ass. However, thinking that no one would notice the tiny wobble in his steps, was wishful thinking.

"Is there a reason why Noah has a funny walk?" Nathan asked loudly to no one in particular, wagging his brows.

Noah overheard as he approached and stiffened, unable to keep a blush from showing on face.

"Geez, I don't know, maybe because he's done a lot of _grinding_ sport last night?" Matthew was equally merciless, prompting more sniggers to ripple around them.

"You mean _getting done to him._ " And Delta erupted into raucous laughter and taunts.

Noah's face went bright red, hot like iron pressed to his skin. Noah puffed up his chest and pointedly strode past them so as not to acknowledge their merciless teasing.

"Hey, stop making my Mrs feel uncomfortable," Rex suddenly jogged in from the other side, shouting from across the entrance. Noah glared at him, aghast, and fisted his tee collar when he reached them.

"Shut it, Rex," Noah growled, stopping short of strangling him before he could say anything else.

"Hey Rex," a Delta teammate shouted across without any consideration, "How many rounds did you –"

Cody elbowed him in the gut before he finished.

"Okay guys, that's enough, let's be kind," Cody defended aloud, though his tone carried a mix of amusement along with warning.

Noah shot Rex with laser beams in his eyes, daring him to say anything. Rex smartly remained silent, but Noah caught him still making a spread palm.

"Yes!" Nathan pumped fists into the air while a few of his Delta mates groaned. Matthew cupped his hands over his mouth and made a hoot. Then they flung their hands open across the table, demanding, "Hey, you owe me fifty bucks. You too. And you, a hundred!"

 _They were betting about him and Rex fucking?_

Noah was appalled. It'd be great if the ground could open up and swallow him whole anytime now. Or a tsunami rush in to sweep the guys all away.

"You incorrigible louts," Noah muttered under his breath, making an about turn.

But oh well, thought they could be annoying when it came betting on anything and everything, at least his teammates were cool with Rex suddenly turning the other side.

And more than anything, it was completely surreal.

That over the span of just one day, their status have changed, from that of best friends, to lovers, and even though unspoken, and unannounced, their friends already acknowledged it.

They were lucky, to have their support like this.

And of course, miraculous, that Noah finally had Rex like this.

It felt surreal to have Rex by his side this morning, as if it was a normal day just like any other.

Except that this day, marked the first morning in the turn of their relationship, one that Noah hoped, would last for a lifetime.

From friends to lovers. Who would have thought? His years of agony, of pining, of listlessly dreaming, would come true.

Something precious. Something new.

Whilst he was initially shocked, and in disbelief over Rex's sudden confession, and the immediate progression, Noah knew what he saw in Rex's eyes and his words, that Rex meant every word he said.

Every action, genuine, and out of love. More loving that Noah could ever dream.

Noah knew without a doubt, he had Rex's heart wholly completely, and would have it, for a long time to come.

And the thought of that, brought a smile to his lips.

* * *

 ***a soulmate would fight beside him :** In chpt 5, Bittersweet – Noah said this whilst comforting him after Rex found out about Circe's and Skywdd's wedding.

Thank you for reading this chapter... pls continue reading for more romance and action. Love to hear your comments pls! Did you enjoy the chapter?


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